Rich Boy, Poor Heart
by White Crescent Moon
Summary: Meet Sakura, the dirt poor girl who lives in an apartment. Then, Ino the rich person, the girl who PAYS for Sakura's apartment. When Ino invites her to meet her RICH friends, will chaos occur, or will love blossom? SASUSAKU others
1. Meeting Sasuke san

**A/N: Okay, I just finished Where The Heart Must Lie, and I hope you all enjoyed it. Now, here is another story!!! Yay! Okay, so yeah, here's chapter 1!!!**

_**A Story By Pink Crescent Moon**_

_**Chapter 1**_

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"Sakura, do you have everything packed?" A blonde asked, running around her apartment room, while juggling brushes, shampoos and sun screens in her hands. The said pink-haired girl neatly zipped her backpack closed and nodded.

"Ino, don't you think you're bringing too many thing…? I mean, we're only staying for ten days…" Sakura asked, anime sweat dropping. Ino gasp.

"Forehead, how dare you! I **did not** bring too many things! It's only because you brought too little!" She accused, pointing at her friend's one slightly large bag. Sakura sighed as she stared at Ino's five bags, that were each filled up to the max with clothes and what not.

"Forget it…hey, you said your friends from America and Okinawa were coming. How are they like?" Sakura asked, changing the subject. Ino and Sakura lived in separate apartment rooms in Tokyo.

"They're really nice, you'll love them!!! There's Naruto, Hinata and Shikamaru who live in Okinawa. Then, there's Neji, Ten Ten and my love…Uchiha Sasuke-kun…" Ino ended dreamily. Her friend rose an eyebrow.

"Sasuke-san…what's he like?" She continued asking. The blonde slumped into her chair and blushed madly.

"Kya, Sakura, he's the hottest guy you'll ever see!!! And his family is really rich! Richer than mine!!!" Ino stated.

You see, all of Ino's friends are freaking rich…except Sakura. All the rich friends decided to go to the beach for a small vacation, and Ino was dragging poor, little Sakura along.

"Okay, c'mon, let's go to the airport!!!" Ino finally yelled, shutting her sixth bag closed. Sakura took her one bag with her and they proceeded towards the limo.

"Hi, Yumito-kun, we're heading towards the airport!" The blonde piped cheerfully after shoving the bags into the back. She waved at her parents and they drove of.

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_Arriving at the Airport…_

"Thnaks, Yumito-kun, see you in ten days!!!" Ino said, giving the handsome man a fifty dollar bill for the ride. She took out everything from the back trunk, blew a kiss to Yumito, and he left.

"Here's your bag, forehead. Oh my god, this is going to be so much fun!!! I can't wait to see their shocked expressions when they see you!!!" Ino yelled, dragging four bags with her, while Sakura helped out and carried three of her friend's bags.

"Y-you didn't tell them about me…?" The pink-haired girl spoke uneasily. Ino smiled.

"I decided to make it a surprise!" She replied. Sakura panicked slightly.

"B-but, Ino, they all come from famous, rich families!!! I'm dirt poor! I wouldn't be living in an apartment if it weren't for you!!!" She said nervously. The bags she was carrying became a lot heavier.

"Calm down, forehead, I'm sure they'll accept you! You might not be rich, but you have a nice body and a pretty face to make up for that!!!" Ino complimented, hoping her friend would stop freaking out.

"But Ino, I know I'll feel left out!!! Ino…?" Sakura trailed off when the said blonde stopped walking and instantly blushed. The pink-haired girl looked back at her, eyebrow raised as she kept walking…then…

"Kya!" Sakura found herself bumping into someone, dropping some of Ino's bags and was about to crash onto the hard floor, but someone caught her. She looked up and saw a handsome, raven-haired, onyx eyed teen.

'_Is this…Sasuke-san…?'_

Ino stopped blushing and felt slight jealousy tugging at her hair.

Sakura got back on her feet as calmly as she could. She picked the bags back up.

"I…um…thank you very much…!" Sakura said, before clumsily dropping her own bag. She cursed and was about to pick it back up again. The boy before her sighed and got it instead.

"Y-you really don't have to…it's fine…" Sakura muttered shyly, a tiny blush adorning her peachy skinned face.

The boy merely shook his head.

"I'll take care of it. Besides, those other bags look…heavy." He replied.

"Oh…um…okay, thanks again. I really appreciate it!" Sakura said cheerfully, trying to force the blush to go away.

"Hn…" The teen said and began walking forward.

'_I guess I should follow him…'_

She looked back behind her at Ino.

"A-are you coming or what?" Sakura asked, with a small giggle. Ino shook her head, shrugging off the little moment before and following.

Sasuke stopped in front of a blond boy, a blushing girl, a white eyed boy, a brunette and a boy with his hair in pineapple shape. Sakura stood before them, feeling nervous all over again.

'_What should I say…?'_

"A-ano, I'm Haruno…Sakura…" She said, introducing herself. Naruto tilted his head a little.

"Ino, is she your friend?" He asked.

"Yup, this is my best friend ever, I call her forehead! She lives by me in an apartment." Ino replied, smiling brightly. She turned to look at Sakura.

"Forehead, this is Naruto, he's really…loud. And, this is Hinata, she's shy, but sometimes sticks up for herself! The one next to her is Neji. He's Hinata's cousin. The brunette is Ten Ten. She's the daughter of the famous weapon maker! And the last one is lazy ass Shikamaru, his family raises pure bred deer, as weird as it may sound..." She explained, pointing at each person.

"Oh…well, hello." Sakura replied. Ino started blushing again.

"And this…is Sasuke-kun." She finished, grabbing the said teen's arm. He growled lowly.

"Back off, woman." He commanded. She pouted, sighed and obeyed.

"Anyways, I hope you get along with them well…" Ino said, in a sad tone.

"Hm…we better get on the plane now…" Ten Ten said, looking at her 100 percent golden watch. They all agreed silently and nodded.

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_On The Plane…_

"Wow…I can't wait to arrive in California…" Ino whispered as she took a seat. It was three to a row. Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura sat together. Then Ino, Shikamaru and Hinata. And finally Ten Ten and Neji, and an empty seat...

(The people who live in America, live in New York.)

"Please put on your seatbelts, we are now departing." The assistant lady spoke into the microphone. They all put them on.

After a few minutes, the plane shook a little and lifted off from the ground. It felt like a small roller coaster.

When they were up in the sky, Sakura held in her breath when she could see that they were flying right beside the clouds. Of course, Shikamaru also enjoyed this part.

"Wow…the clouds look so much better up close." The pink-haired girl said with a dreamy sigh.

"Hell yeah." She heard Shikamaru mutter behind her. Letting out a small giggle, she continued looking out the window.

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_A few hours Later…_

Naruto snickered as Sasuke sighed. The raven-haired teen found that Sakura had fallen asleep…on his shoulder.

And he, for some unknown reason, decided it would be too rude to wake her up. He was now a pillow.

"Ha, teme." Naruto teased in a whispering voice.

"Hey, Ino, look at this!" He said, pointing at the sleeping Sakura. Ino looked up from her magazine, sat up straighter and unconsciously clenched her fists.

"T-tell her to get off him!" She said instantly. Naruto scratched the back of his head.

"Sasuke-teme said to leave her alone and not to wake her up." He replied. Ino was fuming inside.

"Why not?! He never lets me sleep on him!" The blonde girl whined, her head drooping lower.

"Hn…" Sasuke replied. He felt so damn annoyed right now. Not mainly because of Sakura, but because of Ino's constant complaints.

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_A few MORE hours later…_

"We have now arrived in California. Please pick up all personal belongings and exit through the door. Have a nice and safe day." The plane assistant said happily. Sasuke muttered a curse. Sakura was still sleeping.

'_Damn it…how much longer can this girl sleep?'_

He moved a bit, hoping it would be enough to wake her up. Sakura just groaned and stuffed her face into his chest. Sasuke sighed.

"Hey, teme, hurry up." Naruto called as he exited. Sasuke tapped the girl gently on her head. She bolted up instantly and Sasuke soon found her head crashing into his chin.

'_Holy shit…!'_

Sakura looked up at him to see he was rubbing his chin, swearing.

"Kya, Sasuke-kun, I'm so sorry!!! I'm really, really sorry!!!" She said, but she found that her head was throbbing too.

"Tch, whatever, lets get out of here." The Uchiha replied, taking out their bags. He handed one to Sakura and they left the plane quickly. They saw that their friends had been waiting…rather impatiently.

"A-ano…we're sorry for making you guys wait…" Sakura apologized, bowing her head down a bit. Ten Ten rose an eyebrow.

"It's nothing to worry about. You didn't have to bow or anything. We're not kings or queens." The brunette said, smiling. The pink-haired girl nodded, blushing and embarrassed.

'_I'm making a fool out of myself…'_

"Well, c'mon! Let's go over to that hotel!!!" Ino interrupted.

"Yay, I got Tsunade-baa-chan to pay for it!!!" Naruto cheered, thinking of the woman in charge of everything in Okinawa.

"I can't believe Tsunade-sama actually gave in." Ten Ten said. Sakura felt so nervous.

'_They all know the TSUNADE-SAMA??? I feel like such a loser…'_

She bit her lower lip when she saw the massive limo they were going inside.

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**A/N: Do you like it…? I hope so :D**

**Anyways, with chapter one done, please review!!! Thank you!!!**

**TO MAKE THINGS CLEAR:**

**Why is Sakura making such a big deal out of Tsunade-sama??? _Tsunade-sama is the woman who...controls Okinawa...sort of like a mayor._**

**Is Sasuke going to be OOC in this story? _No, he's not. I really like writing about OOC Sasuke, but I decided I need a story with a normal Sasuke._**

**Why do Hinata and Neji live in different countries? _The Hyuuga Company goes world wide, so, they both live in different coutries._**

**So Sakura is really, really poor...?_ Yup, that's right. But Ino pays for her apartment and helps her out with her financial problems!_**

**Sasuke lives in America and Sakura lives in Tokyo. If this story ends happily, how will they stay in a relationship if they live millions of miles away from each other??? _Heh heh...still thinking about that..._**

**PLEASE REVIEW AND I'LL GIVE YOU A LOLLIPOP!!!**


	2. Savor The Moments

**A/N: Hello peoples!!! I was bored so I decided to update:D**

**So, enjoy the chapter!!!**

**Chapter 2**

**------------------------------**

'_Oh god…what a big limo…I feel so stupid now…'_

"Sakura…? Are you coming or what?" Ino interrupted her thoughts. Sakura realized she was the only person who hadn't gotten inside yet. She blushed as everyone stared at her.

'_They must think I'm so weird!!! Gah, why must I keep embarrassing myself like this?!'_

She nervously took the last seat, in between Sasuke and Naruto. The driver took off as soon as she put on her seatbelt. Sakura fidgeted in her spot and gulped every now and then. Sasuke growled as a sign for her to stop annoying him.

'_Damn it, what the hell is wrong with her? She keeps wiggling around and making that annoying gulping sound!' _

Soon, they arrived at the…ahem…**massive** hotel. Sakura sank into her seat.

'…'

"Okay, everyone, we're here." The driver spoke calmly. Sakura got out of the limo quickly. Neji opened up the back trunk and handed everyone their bags. Like before, Sakura helped Ino and carried two of her friend's bags. But what surprised her was when Sasuke had picked up her own pink bag and put it over his shoulder.

"S-Sasuke-san…you really d-don't have to…it's okay, I carry it…" She whispered shyly, the bags she was holding became heavier like before.

"Shut it. I told you before, those bags look heavy." He simply replied, staring down at Ino's bags. Sakura sighed and nodded.

"Yeah…fine." She said, before walking over to talk with Ino.

"Teme…why do you have a **pink** bag? Did you turn gay?" Naruto asked. Sasuke growled dangerously.

"No, dobe, this is Sakura's bag. Even look at the name tag." The raven-haired teen said, annoyed. Naruto peered over and nodded.

"Oh…but why are you carrying it? Do you _like_ Sakura?" He asked, grinning. But he frowned when Sasuke merely sneered.

"No way in **hell**. I just don't like the fact of Ino making her, her slave." He answered, remembering last year, when the blonde girl had forced him to carry **all** of her bags. Naruto shook his head.

"Whatever you say, teme. I have some _condoms_ in my bag just in case you need some." He said, running off before the Uchiha had the chance to kill him.

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Ino merrily skipped up to the front counter as they entered the lobby. Sakura sighed heavily as she slumped into a chair.

'_Now I'm actually glad Sasuke-san carried my bag for me…'_

"Three rooms reserved under _Tsunade_." Ino said to the man. He nodded quickly and handed her three keys. Ten Ten rose an eyebrow.

"_Three_ rooms…? Ino, I thought Tsunade-sama only reserved two rooms with four beds each…" The brunette said. The blonde grinned.

"I'm having a room for myself, _duh_!" She replied. Naruto stuck out his tongue.

"You're so spoiled!" He said loudly. Ino narrowed her eyes.

"I-Ino…please don't start a fight…" Sakura said, smiling nervously. Ino huffed.

"Fine…little miss Sakura-_hime_." She teased. Naruto grinned.

"Sakura-hime, Sakura-hime, Sakura-hime!!!" He chimed playfully. Sakura blushed darker than the color of her hair.

------------------------------

Ino stopped at her room 201 and took her bags. She told them to meet in the lobby when they unpacked and settled in by at least 12. The others left to go to the two other rooms, 245 and 246.

245 was the boys' room and, as you can guess, 246 is the girls' room. Sasuke handed Sakura's bag back to her.

"Thank you, Sasuke-san! I really appreciate it!" She said cheerfully. Sasuke only twitched.

"Quit it with the formalities. It makes my twitch every time I hear it." He commanded.

"Oh…sorry…Sasuke-_kun_…?" She said, trying out the new suffix.

"Hn…" Sasuke shrugged before he entered the room. Sakura smiled as she entered the girls' room. Ten Ten and Hinata giggled.

'_Oh great…I'll feel left out all over again…I bet they have really expensive clothes…'_

"D-did I do something to…amuse you two…?" The pink-haired girl asked as she took out her clothes…which consisted mainly of jeans and plain, but attractive tops.

"Oh, no, sorry if we gave you the wrong impression. It's just…we think Sasuke has a soft spot for you." Ten Ten said. She put her neatly folded clothes on her bed. She had the tomboy style and had cargo pants and brown, black or gray shirts. The brunette also brought along a box with skull jewelry and what not.

"W-what?! N-no…me and Sasuke-kun?! He doesn't like me at all! I know he thinks I'm…

------------------------------

"**Annoying**. That pink-haired girl is just plain annoying." Sasuke said when Naruto, Neji and Shikamaru told him they think Sasuke had a soft spot for her.

"She's not annoying, Uchiha. I can actually feel a sweet aura around her." Neji said, putting his cream colored shorts and vests into a cabinet. Naruto nodded.

"Yeah teme, besides, you're too harsh on her." He said, admiring the orange shirts and hoodies he brought with him.

"Idiot, he's harsh on _everyone_…" Shikamaru said, lazily throwing his unfolded clothes onto his bed. Naruto sighed.

"Yeah, you're right…I just wish there would be someone who could help him out…" The blond said, an image of Sakura popping into his head.

'_We could all do some matchmaking…'_

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"S-Sakura-san, is something wrong…?" Hinata asked as she sorted her skirts, pants and cute tops. The female Hyuuga could sense something was wrong with Sakura.

"I…it's just you guys are rich and have…nicer clothes than I do. It makes me feel so…left out." The pink-haired teen admitted with a small smile on her face. Ten Ten shook her head.

"Your clothes are just as good as ours. Actually, I like your style. Simple…yet cute!" The brunette said, making her feel better. Hinata nodded.

"You have c-cute clothes, Sakura-san. I-I like that heart s-shirt you're wearing." She complimented.

"You two are really sweet…" Sakura said. They all put their clothes away and looked at the clock.

"Hm…we have thirty more minutes until we have to go down to the lobby. What do you guys wanna talk about?" Ten Ten asked, lying down on her bed lazily. Sakura and Hinata shrugged.

"How about…a five minute game of truth or dare?" The brunette suggested. The two nodded.

"Okay…Hinata, truth or dare?" She asked. Knowing Hinata, the little goody good, she'll choose truth.

"Truth…" The Hyuuga replied as Ten Ten smiled. Sakura tilted her head to the side curiously.

"Is it true that you like…Naruto-baka?" The brunette asked. Hinata blushed as Sakura's mouth fell open.

"A-ano…yes…it's true…" She shyly admitted. Sakura almost fell over anime style.

'_Hinata…likes…Naruto?! But he's so…annoying and loud…and she's so shy and sweet!!! The world is playing tricks on me!!!'_

"I knew it!!! Okay, Sakura, truth or dare?" Ten Ten asked, while dancing around, singing, 'Naru and Hina, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!!!'

"Um…d-dare…?" She said uneasily. Ten Ten stopped singing and dancing.

"Wow…I wasn't expecting that. Well then…Hinata, help me out here." She said. The two girls went in a corner and talked about different dares.

Finally, after much debating, Ten Ten emerged from the corner.

"Sakura! We dare you, to give, Uchiha Sasuke, a…HUG!" She announced as Sakura sweat dropped.

'_A hug…? That's not so bad…'_

"Okay, I can do that!! So, Ten Ten, truth or dare?" Sakura asked, smiling.

"DARE!!!" She yelled, throwing a fist into the air. Sakura knew the perfect dare. She took something out of her pocket.

"Ten Ten, I dare you…to…spill this lotion on his 'precious' long, hair…" The pink-haired girl started as the the two gasped.

"_And_…cut a one inch long **lock** of it." She finished as they almost fainted. Ten Ten gulped.

"N-no way, Sak! Not even for a million dollars!!! Neji would **kill** me!!!" She shouted.

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"_Neji would kill me!!!"_

The boys looked around the room.

"Did you hear something…?" Naruto asked. The three shrugged and continued playing poker.

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"Oh well…a dare's a dare…" Sakura said, smiling sweetly as she held up a small tube of lotion and miniature scissors. Ten Ten screamed into a pillow.

"SAK!!! You can't do this to me!!! I'm too young to die!!!!!!!" She yelled, thinking how mad Neji would be if she did that dare to him.

**Lotion on his hair…his long hair…that he conditioned and shampooed three times a day…**

_**Cutting**_**a **_**one inch**_** lock of his precious **_**hair**_**…**

It made the poor girl shudder.

Slowly…like a snail…she took the lotion and scissors from Sakura's hands. Ten Ten's hands shook as she held the two materials.

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"_I'm too young to die!!!!!!!" _

Neji rose an eyebrow and put his cards down.

"I think we should go and see what they're doing." He suggested…no, commanded. The boys sighed, stopped their game and nodded. They casually slipped their shoes an and walked out the door. Naruto lazily knocked on the girls' door.

_Knock…knock…_

Ten Ten froze.

'_Crap…I bet it's the guys…!'_

Sakura smiled.

"Ten Ten, why don't you answer it?" She asked sweetly. The brunette gulped. She jumped off the bed and opened the door, immediately hiding the materials behind her back. The boys looked around the room. Then, they stared back at her.

"What was going on in here? We swear we heard screaming!" Naruto said loudly. Sakura strode over to the door.

"Nothing's wrong! Oh, crap!" Sakura acted as she 'accidentally' tripped forward, throwing Ten Ten forward. The brunette, being quick, opened the tube of lotion and 'accidentally' squeezed it and spilled it all over Neji's hair. Hinata gasped in the background.

Sakura fell to the other side and hugged Sasuke to prevent herself from hitting the ground. Thankfully, they weren't in an awkward position. She blushed and glanced over at Ten Ten, to signal she had done the dare. She stood up.

"I-I'm sorry Sasuke-san…ah, I mean Sasuke-kun! I'm really sorry if I did _anything_ to offend you! I didn't mean it!" Sakura would've talked on forever if Sasuke hadn't slammed his hand over her mouth angrily. She flinched in pain.

'_Ow…that hurt…'_

"Be quiet…it's annoying." He muttered, putting his hand back by his side. She nodded.

…

Neji had his mouth wide open when he felt the squishy substance on his hair. Ten Ten held the scissors behind her back.

"NEJI!!! I'm SO sorry!!! I didn't mean to…" She said with a fake tone. She put her hands on his hair, pretending to wipe it off. Quickly, she cut a lock of his lotion covered hair and hid it behind her back.

"N-no…problem…if you'll all excuse me, I'll be taking a quick shower now…" Neji spoke, through gritted teeth. He opened his door and escaped from view. Ten Ten let out a sigh and gave Sakura a smile in relief.

"I can't believe you actually did that…" Sakura whispered.

"Sak…it's all your fault." The brunette replied, before the two girls entered their room. Naruto stood there like an idiot.

"Hey, teme, have you ever imagined people saying 'blah' and then exploding?!" The blonde asked randomly. Sasuke shook his head as he entered his room.

"Blah!!! …BOOM!!!" Naruto yelled, laughing.

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_12 o'clock…_

"Well, we better start riding that elevator." Ten Ten said, looking at the clock. She checked herself in the mirror and nodded at herself, grinning. Her hand held onto her silver, basketball shaped locket, which incased the lock of Neji's hair.

Hinata patted her white, mini skirt and smiled warmly at her reflection.

Sakura looked at her pathetic looking self in the mirror. She had a plain jean skirt, a simple black tank top and stupid black Converse. She sighed. For 'extra points', her hair was down.

'_I'm too simple…I'll probably borrow some of Ino's clothes or money later…'_

"Okay, yosh, let's go!" Ten Ten said, as the three girls locked their door and proceeded to the lobby.

_**With the boys…**_

Neji combed his freshly shampooed and conditioned hair and tied it at the bottom neatly. He slipped on a cream colored vest and smirked at his reflection.

Shikamaru simply changed his clothes and sat on the bed, not bothering to look at himself in the mirror.

Naruto did many poses to himself. He ruffled his bright orange shirt playfully and grinned.

"Who's that drop dead sexy guy in the mirror?" He cooed happily.

Sasuke put on a black hoodie, jeans and Vans.

'_Simple…I like simple…'_

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_**Lobby…**_

The seven friends groaned. Ino was the one who said to be here by 12. It was now 1 and she was no where to be seen.

"One bottle of beer on the wall…one bottle of beer…take one down, pass it around…zero bottles of beer on the wall…" Naruto sang lazily. Shikamaru smacked him.

"Where the hell is Ino…?" Sakura and Ten Ten asked for the millionth time. They were sitting on a chair, back to back. As if on cue, the cheery blonde girl walked in. She waved at them happily.

"Hello peoples, what's up?" Ino shouted. The group only glared at her in reply. She rose an eyebrow.

"Did I do something wrong?" She asked. Sakura breathed angrily.

"Ino-pig, you are a slut!!! You had all of us waiting here for one freaking hour!!!" She yelled, surprising everyone. Sasuke nudged Neji.

"What was that you said about a 'sweet aura'?" He asked, smirking. Neji elbowed him.

Ino giggled nervously.

"I…um…well…I'm sorry everyone for making you wait so long! It's just…I had no idea what to wear!" She said. Everyone fought the urge to punch her right then and there.

"Forget it, let's all go get ice-cream or something…" Ten Ten muttered through gritted teeth. Sakura nodded and tried calming herself down.

------------------------------

Sakura licked her strawberry ice-cream contently while Sasuke, the person beside her, bit into his vanilla flavored one. Everyone else was taking a quick bathroom break before buying their ice-cream. As a coincidence, Sasuke and Sakura were the only two who didn't need to 'go'.

"Sasuke-kun, why do you **bite** into your ice-cream?" The pink-haired girl asked. Sasuke sighed. He was hoping their 'moment' together would be silent.

"Because that's the way I eat my ice-cream." He merely replied, clearly annoyed at just one question.

"I think it's better to savor moments…even the smallest ones. That's why I lick my ice-cream…" Sakura said, looking at him in the eye.

"Savor small moments…?" Sasuke said uneasily. Sakura giggled and smiled at him.

"Yup, 'cuz you don't know if you'll die today…or the next day. That's why you should savor moments everyday!" She explained. Sasuke nodded in understanding.

"You should lick the ice-cream slowly…to truly taste it and enjoy its flavor." Sakura added. The raven-haired teen licked it slowly. He tasted the tingling taste of the vanilla on his tongue.

"But it'll take me a long time if I keep eating ice-cream like this…" Sasuke said. Sakura shrugged.

"So? If you were to die this day, wouldn't you want to taste the ice-cream one last time? It would be sad if someone died not remembering the taste of _anything_…you don't taste much if you just bite it and simply swallow." She said.

Sasuke was speechless. He suddenly felt so…pathetic around her. While he had been living life rich and going through things quickly, she had been living peacefully, savoring every moment. It made him seem spoiled.

Sakura noticed his pause.

"Sasuke-kun…are you okay?" She asked, her green eyes showing concern. He was pulled away from his thoughts. He looked down at her and nodded, _licking slowly_ at his ice-cream as she smiled.

"You know, for a cold hearted bastard…you can be pretty nice sometimes…" She whispered. He looked at her as if she were crazy. She laughed.

"Never mind…forget what I said! If I'm ever offending you, you can just tell me instead of looking at me like I have two heads or something!" She said in a kind tone. Sasuke could now feel what Neji felt earlier.

'_A sweet aura…?'_

Perhaps, she could teach him a thing or two about life. He licked his ice-cream again and the two patiently waited for the others. He actually felt…better that she had started talking to him.

But unknown to the Uchiha, Sakura was savoring this moment…

**A/N: I've decided to make every chapter as long as I can instead of the little short ones. **

**So, savor this chapter, and please, review. **

**Thank you!!!**

**Review Replies:**

**daisherz365: Thanks for the review! You always seem to review everything I write…**

**Yuki's Little Girl: I'm glad you liked the first chapter!!! Thanks so much for the review!!!**

**niwichan2468: Yup, those are the pairings. My favorite pairings…thanks for reviewing!!! I would feel happy if you reviewed again…nudge…**

**roxie-san: Hm…cherry or grape…? How about both? (hands over two lollipops) Okay, now that I have given you your treat, review again!!! Bwahahahahha…okay…thanks for reviewing…**

**chocolateangel5: Yay, thank you! Aren't you glad these chapters are going to be longer than the ones in Where The Heart Must Lie? I just hope this story is successful too. Anyways, thanks for the review!!!**

**xwayxintoxanime: I hope Ino doesn't take things too far! Well…why did Sasuke let her sleep on him..? I have no idea…I just needed a SasuSaku moment there. Well, thanks for the review!**

**oOfunkyrainbowOo: I'm happy you liked the first chapter! Yay for lollipops!!! Thanks for the review!!!**

**sharinganuser21: I updated quickly only because I was bored…anyways, here's your lollipop! (gives lollipop) Enjoy, and thanks for reviewing!!**

**pandagirl08: I know…I like OOC Sasuke-kun too…but oh well! I hope you enjoy this story all the same! Thanks for reviewing!!!**

**darknesses-light: I'm glad you found it interesting!!! Thanks for the review!!!**

**:): I'll miss my OOC Sasuke-kun!!! Sob…oh well…sob…thanks for the review!!!**

**Punkcorn-Friday13th: Aw…you're so sweet, I love getting compliments! Thanks for reviewing!!!**


	3. I'm Sorry

**A/N: Hi everyone!!! Here's the next chapter!!!**

**And thank you everyone for the reviews!!!**

**Chapter 3**

------------------------------

After the ice-cream, Naruto needed some paper towels to wash his face…which was covered in large amounts of his chocolate flavored treat.

"Not it!" Yelled everyone except Sasuke and Sakura. The Uchiha cursed.

"Eh? What does 'not it' mean?" The pink-haired girl asked. Ten Ten smiled.

"It means, you and Sasuke are going to have to walk to the store and buy Naruto some paper towels!" The brunette exclaimed. Ino pouted.

"Why can't _I_ go with Sasuke-kun…?" She whined. Sakura nodded.

"Y-yeah, Ino can go with him! I'll stay here and-!"

"Let's go…" Sasuke muttered, grabbing her wrist. If there was one thing her truly hated in this world, it was Yamanaka Ino. But Sakura did get on his nerves sometimes. Ten Ten stopped them.

"Wait! I don't know how it got so cold, but, here Sak, wear my sweater…you might get cold." She offered, taking her sweater off. Sakura smiled.

"No, it's fine Ten Ten! Besides, I wouldn't want _you_ to catch a cold!" She replied.

------------------------------

Sasuke and Sakura walked on the busy sidewalks, looking around for a store that looked like it sold paper towels. Sakura shivered a bit.

'_Ten Ten was right…it __**is**__ cold…!'_

They entered a store. (That was warm, in which Sakura felt happier.) They quickly bought the paper towels and excited. Sakura hugged herself to try and get warmer. Sasuke noticed this.

"Hn…you should've accepted Ten Ten's offer. You're going to get a cold you know." He pointed out. She whined. It was only the first day of her vacation here, and she was already getting sick.

'_I'm so pathetic!!!'_

She felt her head throb and her legs shake.

'_Oh god…I don't think I can walk for very long…'_

"Sakura, if you're that cold you can borrow my sweater-!" Sasuke stopped talking when he felt someone leaning on his back. He sighed and turned to see Sakura, who looked rather pale.

"I told you, you would get a cold." He said. She only swayed and groaned, sliding off of his back and onto the floor. Sasuke only sighed again, took off his sweater, put it on her body, picked her up and started walking again like nothing was happening. He would glare at anyone was gave him strange looks. Sasuke looked down at the pink-haired girl and saw that she was unconscious. Her breath was visible as she breathed evenly and slowly.

------------------------------

The group sat lazily at the tables and turned their heads to see Sasuke carrying Sakura.

'_That's…unusual…'_

Naruto went up to him, grabbed the paper towels and wiped his face clean. Everyone, except Naruto, had noticed Sakura was asleep. They all counted in their heads.

_Three…_

_Two…_

_One…_

"Hey look! Sakura's sleeping!!!" The blond said in awe. Sasuke hit his head. Damn it, he is so dense. Ino felt jealous all over again.

"W-why are you carrying her, Sasuke-kun?" She asked, hiding her anger.

"She caught a cold and fainted." He replied calmly, sitting down…with Sakura still sleeping in his lap. He looked like he was cradling her. Ten Ten smiled.

"I knew it…" She muttered.

'_But I should've just given Sak the damn sweater…she's way too nice…'_

"For a poor person…she's really sweet…" Ten Ten said, looking at the pink-haired girl. She looked like a peaceful five year-old. Hinata nodded.

"S-she's a person who thinks o-of the glass **half full**…n-not half empty…" The female Hyuuga said. They all stared at her.

"Wow…that's deep…" Naruto replied. She blushed, muttering a small 'thank you' to her lifetime crush. Neji crossed his arms.

"But, she's right. Sakura looks at what she has, not what she's missing." He said. Naruto grinned.

"Teme, you two would make a perfect couple. Maybe she can teach you how to _talk in larger words_…or even how to **love**." He teased. Ino was fuming inside.

"H-he doesn't need her! She's uh…um…too innocent to go out with!!!" Ino yelled, not really knowing what to say. Ten Ten stuck her tongue out.

"Ino! You're just jealous!!!" She answered back.

------------------------------

Sakura rubbed her sore eyes as she woke up. She felt woozy and her head hurt like hell. She looked at the wooden desk by her bed.

'_I'm in the…hotel…?'_

Sakura noticed a tray with food and a note. She picked up the little piece of paper.

'_Sakura-_

_Here's some soup, eat it now so you get better._

_We're all downstairs eating our own dinner. If you need any help, don't hesitate to ask._

_-Sasuke'_

She blushed lightly, but shook her head.

'_I shouldn't be having a crush on him! Ino likes him! I can't betray my best friend!'_

Sighing, she put the tray in her lap and slowly ate the soup. It was still pretty warm. But she didn't really feel like eating. After a few spoons of the soup, she put it back on the side desk. Sakura didn't even finish half of the meal.

'_I feel like throwing up…'_

She let out a small, frustrated sigh and fell back into the bed so her head was resting on the silk pillow. It was only then when she realized she was wearing a sweater. It wasn't her sweater. It was **Sasuke's sweater**. She heard a knock on the door.

"Uh…come in." Sakura said. She was surprised to hear that her voice sounded so…weak and small. The door opened and there was Ten Ten.

"Sak…you sound so sick! I see you saw Sasuke's note." She said, looking at the partly eaten soup. Sakura nodded meekly, blushing a little. This didn't go unnoticed by the brunette.

"You _like_ him, don't you?" She asked. The pink-haired girl shook her head quickly.

"N-no! Ten Ten, Ino likes him! If I start liking him, she'll hate me forever!!!" Sakura said in defense. Her friend sighed heavily.

"Tsk, tsk, you should think about **yourself** once in a while. You care too much." She said, smiling.

"B-but…that'll make me selfish…" Sakura muttered, too quiet for Ten Ten to hear.

"Well, I better get back downstairs. Sasuke wanted me to check on you. I guess he thought coming here himself would…ruin his reputation." She said, with a small giggle. Sakura grinned.

"Okay, bye! And tell him I said thank you!" She replied as Ten Ten nodded and closed the door.

------------------------------

'_I'm being such a __**burden **__to everyone…they have to stay here just because __**I'm sick**__…'_

Everyone else were in the boys' room. Sakura told them to leave her here and go out to have fun. But they argued with her and told her she was being too nice. It seemed like everyone was telling her that. So, that they wouldn't catch a cold, she told them to stay in another room. If she ever needed something, she could just go next door.

_Knock…knock…_

"Come in…" Sakura answered in a bored tone. Her voice was still weak though. She was surprised and embarrassed to see Sasuke coming through the door.

"Ah…um…hi…Sasuke-kun." She spoke nervously. He nodded, took out something from his pocket, and put the item on Sakura's forehead. He was checking her temperature. Sasuke looked and the screen and sighed.

"You have a temperature of 103 degrees Fahrenheit. It's like you have a fever now…" He said, with no concern in his voice. Actually, Sakura couldn't even sense any emotion as he spoke. Sasuke looked at her and saw her cheeks were red.

'_I can't tell if she's blushing, or if her fever's just getting worse…'_

"I'm going to get you some medicine in the store." The Uchiha said, referring to the shop they went to, to buy Naruto some paper towels. Sakura stopped him with a gesture of her hand.

"Uh…it still might be cold outside…you might need this…" She said shyly, handing him back his sweater. Sasuke stared at her for awhile and took it. He left the room without another word.

'_Hmph! The least he could do is say thank you!'_

Sasuke came back in thirty minutes with some tablets. Oh, how she despised tablets. Sasuke was also holding a bottle of water.

He popped two tablets out and gave them to her, along with the bottled water.

"Take it now." He commanded. She nodded and he watched her carefully as she took the tablets and drank the water. She smiled at him.

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun."

"Hn." He replied. It was silent. Sakura shifted nervously in the bed.

"Ten Ten told you to think about yourself once in a while, right?" He questioned, breaking the silence. The pink-haired girl nodded.

"She told me that you said that'll make you selfish…" Sasuke continued.

"Oh…um…yeah…" She said, uneasily. He turned his head to the side so they wouldn't have any eye contact.

"You can say what you want…be selfish from time to time." He said. Sakura looked up at him, but his head was turned so he didn't look back.

'_This is so…unlike him…'_

She didn't say anything. He felt like an idiot.

"I know you might think I'm weird now…I'll just leave then…"

"N-no…I know what you mean…a-and I appreciate you a lot! Thank you…" Sakura answered, her voice fading into a faint whisper as she spoke. He finally looked at her.

'_She's getting weaker…'_

"You should get some sleep now." Sasuke suggested, turning around to walk out of the room. She nodded.

"Yes…" She muttered, throwing a thin blanket over herself and closing her eyes. She didn't hear the door close though. Sasuke leaned on the door. He was waiting for her to fall asleep. When her breathing became faint and even, he walked up to her. Sakura felt nervous.

'_Kya…he thinks I'm asleep!'_

Slowly, Sasuke put some of her hair behind her ear. He leaned down and whispered two words.

"_I'm sorry…"_

Sasuke stood up and left. Once the sound of the door closing was heard, she sat up with an immense blush on her cheeks. His touch was so tender. It was like he was a whole other person!

'_That was embarrassing!!!'_

'_He seemed so…kind…and sweet…but…why did he tell me he's sorry…? I don't get it…'_

She laid her head back on the pillows and smiled.

'_Sasuke…'_

And with that, she finally went to sleep.

------------------------------

_**Day Two…**_

Sakura woke up and yawned, stretching her arms out into the air.

"Yo!" Ten Ten greeted, waving. She jumped slightly.

"You scared me, Ten!" Sakura replied, giving her friend a small nick name. The brunette grinned.

"If you feel better, we can all go outside again!" She suggested.

"That would be nice! I think I'm better!" Sakura answered. They both heard Hinata let out a small yawn.

"Good morning, Hinata!!!" They yelled in unison. There was a loud knock on the door. Sakura walked over to it and opened it. It was the boys…they all had messy hair and grumpy expressions.

"You woke us up." Shikamaru said lazily. Sakura blushed.

"Sorry…" She said, smiling.

"Yay, Sakura-chan is feeling better!!!" Naruto shouted, hugging her. Sasuke grabbed him and threw him off.

"Idiot…you're going to suffocate her and get her sick again." He stated. Sakura let out a small giggle.

"Yeah…since I'm feeling better, we can all go outside today!" She said. Neji crossed his arms.

"Are you sure that's a good idea…?" He asked. She just got sick yesterday and she thinks she can get better overnight?

"I'm positive! You guys just worry too much! I'll be fine!" Sakura assured. They all looked at her carefully as she smiled innocently.

"Fine…" They muttered, defeated. She giggled and closed the door. Ten Ten and Hinata were staring at her.

"Did I do something…bad?" She asked. Ten Ten grinned.

"No! That was awesome! How did you persuade them?" She asked, even though she had witnessed it.

"It's power cuteness!" Sakura replied, throwing a fist into the air. She then went over to her closet and searched through it to find an outfit to wear. She settled with a pink tank top and jean caprice.

'_Simple…simple…I'm starting to like it!'_

"Hime-chan…which one is b-better?" A timid voice asked. Sakura turned around. Hinata had given her a nickname!

The shy Hyuuga was holding up two outfits. The one on the left was a red tank top with a black, sparkly butterfly printed on the front, with a short jean skirt and red and black bangles. The one on the right was a white short sleeved shirt was a pink rose in the middle with a silk, pink skirt and white leggings.

"Hm…the one on the right…" Sakura replied. Hinata was the type who was supposed to look sweet, not gothic. Hinata smiled and nodded in thanks, walking into the bathroom to change her clothes.

Ten Ten was sitting on her bed with a black short sleeved shirt, gray fingerless gloves, brown cargo pants and black Converse. She put two skull trinkets on each bun in her hair.

------------------------------

"Okay, is everyone ready?!" Ino asked happily as she walked into the lobby.

"Ino, you were supposed to be here an hour ago!!!" Naruto whined. Ino laughed nervously.

"I um…didn't know what to wear…and I ran into this **hot** employee and…" She sighed dreamily. Sakura glared at her.

"Ino-**pug**…" She muttered. (Yes, Ino-PUG)

"Anyways, where are we going to go today?" The blonde asked. They all thought for awhile. No place came to mind.

…

…

…

"Uh…how about we go back to our rooms, pick up our swim suits, bikinis, swimming trunks, etc., and be here by…12:20. I think we should go to the beach." Ten Ten suggested. Everyone nodded.

"Ino-pig, be on time." Sakura added. They all went back to their rooms.

_**1:20…**_

"She's an hour late…again!" Naruto shouted. They all had their swim suits, bikinis, swimming trunks, etc. under their casual attire. Ten Ten was banging her head repeatedly on a table. Then, the 'ding' of the elevator was heard and Ino came bouncing in the lobby.

"Hi!" She greeted. They glared at her.

"You were supposed to be here **an hour ago**…" Naruto, Ten Ten, Sakura and Shikamaru said darkly.

"Sorry! You see, there was this **hot** life guard!" She replied, smiling. **(A/N: Lol, she's acting like Kakashi!)**

"Whatever, let's just go to the beach already." Neji said in a bored tone.

------------------------------

"Okay, we're going to go to the bathroom really quick! Be back in a sec!" Ino said, dragging the girls into the restroom. She giggled.

"Oh, wait 'till Sasuke-kun sees me! He's gonna go head over heels!" She whispered to them. Ten Ten groaned.

"Ino, I know as much as you do that Sasuke hates you." She stated. But Ino was already in a stall, taking off her clothes. She came back out with a purple two piece bikini. On her ass, it read the word 'sexy'. Ino stared at them.

"Hello? Aren't you three going to take your clothes off?" She asked. They nodded in realization and ran quickly into a stall. Hinata and Ten Ten came out. Hinata was in a baby blue swim suit. Ten Ten was in a green bikini. On the breast area, it said 'bad girl'. They waited for Sakura.

"Forehead! Hurry up!" Ino yelled, getting fairly impatient. Sakura was nervous in the stall.

'_I think I look hideous! Uh…I'm too fat!!!'_

"U-um…you can go on ahead! I'll be there soon!" She said, making a lame excuse.

"Must be having her period…" Ino muttered as the three exited. They saw the boys were already in their swimming trunks…and they looked extremely **hot**. Ino flung herself at Sasuke. She nearly fainted when she felt her skin on his. But he shoved her off.

"Don't do that." He said angrily. Ino giggled.

"Okay Sasuke-kun! You have a weird way of showing your love!!!" She replied, blushing. The group rolled their eyes.

"Where's Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked. Ten Ten sighed.

"I think she doesn't want to come out…she's so self conscious…" She answered. She only knew her for one day, and it seemed like they knew her so well.

"S-Sakura-san…are you d-d-d-d-done…?" Hinata shouted into the bathroom. Sakura froze in the stall. She didn't want anyone to see her.

"I…um..." She started nervously.

"C'mon forehead, you're not fat, okay?" Ino yelled loudly. She gulped. Slowly, she picked up her bag, shyly opened the stall door and sighed heavily.

'_This is it…oh, I hope I don't look fat…'_

Sakura walked outside. Sasuke almost **gapped**. Almost.

She looked amazing. She had on a simple, light pink bikini. Sasuke nearly gulped when he saw her curves, her legs and…and…her breasts.

"D-do I look…o-o-okay…?" She asked shyly, fidgeting.

"Hell yeah! Sakura-chan, you look damn **sexy**!!!" Naruto exploded. She blushed a deep shade of red.

"Isn't she pretty, Sasuke-teme…?" Naruto asked, nudging the said teen. He cocked his head to the side.

"Yeah…" He murmured. Sakura almost fainted right on the spot.

'_Sasuke-kun said I'm p-pretty…'_

'_**Yeah girl, show him what we got!'**_

"Let's all get some shaved ice!" Naruto shouted, throwing his fist into the air. They nodded. Sakura felt more…comforting with them than yesterday. But she wanted to know why Sasuke had told her he was sorry. She walked by his side.

"S-Sasuke-kun…uh…can I talk to you for a second…?" She asked nervously. She could feel his eyes staring down at her face. He nodded and they snuck out of the group. Ino eyed them suspiciously.

"A-ano…you told me you were s-s-sorry…" Sakura started. Sasuke rose an eyebrow.

"You were awake?" He asked. He felt embarrassed, but of course, he would never show it or admit it. She shyly nodded.

"A-and…I want to know…why did you apologize?" She questioned. He sighed and leaned on the wall behind him.

"Because…before, I thought poor people were…disgusting." Sasuke said coolly. She winced. But he continued talking.

"Then…I met you and…even if you're poor, you can always smile like that. You're always cheerful and caring of everyone. So, I'm sorry for thinking so poorly of you at first." He said, no emotion in his voice, what so ever. She looked up at him and smiled warmly.

Before he could do or say anything, he felt slender arms around his body. Sakura inhaled his scent as she hugged him. Sasuke recovered quickly from his surprise and awkwardly returned the hug, wrapping one arm around her waist.

"You know Sasuke-kun, you're nice too. Even if people don't really see it, each person is nice and kind in their own way." Sakura whispered.

"Aa." He replied in understanding.

A few feet away, a very pissed off Ino glared at the two embracing figures.

**A/N: Wow that took awhile! I hope you all enjoyed that chapter.**

**If Sasuke is OOC, then I'm very sorry! I can't help it! I've been writing about OOC Sasuke for some time now…so, yeah.**

**Last, but not least: REVIEW**

**Review Replies For Chapter 2:**

**9081: Yea, I noticed that too. Strange…anyways, thanks for reviewing!!! XOXO**

**roxie-san: Yay cherry lollipops! And yes, in my story, Ino is a , especially in my next chapter! But hopefully, Shikamaru will smack some sense into her!**

**xwayxintoxanime: I love vanilla ice-cream too! It's so yummy fulls…anyways, thanks for the review!**

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	4. It's Okay To Show Your Feelings

**A/N: Here's the next chapter!!! I updated earlier, but the chapter is shorter than the one before. All in all, I hope you all still love it!**

**God, I'm so glad about all the awesome reviews I'm getting! Yay!!! (but it could be better ;)**

**I've been forgetting the disclaimer…so, here it is:**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Naruto.**

**And for those who asked, yes, some ideas were inspired by the manga 'Fruits Basket', so I also give credit to Natsuki Takaya. **

**Chapter 4**

------------------------------

Ino glared at the embracing figures.

'_It's true…my Sasuke-kun likes her! How could this be?! I'm so much sexier!!!'_

A hand touched her bare shoulder. She whipped her head around to yell at who ever did that. She was surprised to see Shikamaru looking at her.

"W-what the hell do you want?!" Ino shouted angrily. He winced at how high her voice was.

Slowly, his hand glided to her cheek to wipe something off…a tear.

"You're crying." Shikamaru stated. Ino hid her face in her hands.

'_I'm crying?! Oh no…'_

She glanced up at him.

'_But why am I so worked up about Shikamaru?! I don't like him…! …right…?'_

He sighed and took a seat next to her. His eyes drifted towards Sakura and Sasuke.

"So…you're jealous, huh?" Shikamaru asked. Ino glumly nodded. He sighed again.

"You know…there are other guys out in the world who are dying to go out with you. You should stop crushing on Sasuke and look around you." He said. She rose an eyebrow.

"Like who? Name one." She instructed. Shikamaru looked at his hands.

'_I'll tell her later…'_

"It's too troublesome…I'm bored now. C'mon…let's go get shaved ice." He offered. She smiled at him.

"Okay!" She replied happily, grasping his hand.

'_He can tell me later…'_

He smirked at her.

'_There __**are**__ other guys…and one of them just might…be you…'_

------------------------------

Sasuke leaned coolly against the wall. Sakura stood across from him with a pleasant smile on her face. It was silent, but they were strangely enjoying it. Then, a trio of boys around their age was in view. They were whispering.

"_Hey…look at that girl. Isn't she cute?"_

"_Yeah! She's hot!!!"_

"_She looks pretty innocent…"_

"_Mmhm…she doesn't look very strong…"_

"_Maybe we should go talk to-!"_

Sasuke, who was eavesdropping on the boys' conversation, put one of his arms over her head, like he was shielding her from rain. He narrowed his eyes at the trio and gave them a very frightening glare.

The trio stiffened and walked off.

"_That was scary!"_

"_Dude, I didn't even know he was there until he protected the cute girl! So scary!!!"_

"_Yea! Man, we lost our chance to meet the cute girl!"_

Sakura looked up at Sasuke.

"Sasuke-kun, is something wrong?" She asked, looking at his arm that was above her head. He put his arm back down.

'_Great…I made myself look like an idiot…__**again**__…'_

"Hn…" He replied. Sasuke began walking to their group. He made a simply gesture with his hand for her to follow.

When they got there, Ino went towards Sakura. Her blue eyes showed a feeling that was never there before. Her eyes showed the feeling of…apology.

"Forehead…I'm really sorry…I should've known better…" She said, bowing her head down slightly. Sakura looked at her in surprise.

'_Wow…first Sasuke…now Ino's telling me she's sorry!'_

"Uh…why are you apologizing…?" The pink-haired girl asked. Ino smiled.

"I realized there are other boys out in the world besides Sasuke-kun. I spent my time drooling and obsessing over him…even if it was obvious hates me. And then…he met you. You two have a really…special bond with each other and I got jealous. So, I'm sorry…and, good luck." Ino explained. Sakura tilted her head to the side.

"Eh? Sorry for what?" She asked. Ino winked.

"Forehead, you'll realize soon that there's a special someone out there for you…and he's not far away." She replied.

------------------------------

_**Back at the Hotel…**_

"_Achoo!"_

Sakura's sneeze sounded like a baby animal's cry. Sasuke glanced over at her as she blushed a shade of red.

"Ah…um…s-s-s-sorry…" She whispered. He threw his sweater at her face.

"Put it on or you'll get sick again." He instructed. She meekly nodded and slipped on the warm, black sweater. She smiled at him.

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun!" She chirped happily.

"_Achoo…!"_

Sakura sneezed into the black sleeve. He sighed.

"Um…sorry for sneezing on the sleeve! You probably don't want to wear it anymore…?" She said uneasily. Sasuke, to her surprise, smirked at her.

"If you want it, you can keep it." He replied. He was amused when she started blushing again. Her hands went up in defense.

"N-no…! It's not like that!!! I…uh-!"

"_A-achoo!!!"_

Sakura sneezed on the sleeve again.

"You can keep that damn sweater. Besides, I don't want to wear anything with _germs_ on it." Sasuke said, grimacing. She stuck her tongue out at him.

"Meanie!" She shouted, pushing him off the chair. He stumbled forward, but thanks to his quick reflexes, he gained his balance again. The door flew open.

"Well…well…what are _you two_ doing in a room _together_…?" Ino asked slyly, winking at them. Sakura gaped.

"W-we're not doing anything, I swear!!!" Sakura shouted nervously.

'_I guess she really did give up on Sasuke-kun…'_

"Yeah right, you tried _pinning_ me onto the _floor_…" Sasuke said with a handsome smirk. She hit his arm playfully.

"I **did not**! You're a liar!!!" The pink-haired girl complained unhappily. Ino giggled in the background.

"Have fun, you two!!!" She said before closing the door behind her.

_Silence…_

Sakura fidgeted nervously.

"_Achoo!!!"_

"Mou…I hate colds…" She complained, her head drooping down. Sasuke sighed as he crossed his arms.

"You were the one who wanted to go outside. We told you not to go…" He muttered. Sakura looked over at him.

"But you all couldn't resist the puppy dog eyes and my power cuteness…" She teased, grinning at him. Sasuke gave her a small glare.

"Damn it woman! How can you keep _smiling_ like that?! You have a freaking cold but you can still be happy! Stop disguising your real feelings and let them out. When I was really small, I would cry because my dad only noticed my brother, and left me out completely. But you, even if you smile, I can always tell that you're feeling bad. So, if…you feel sad…you…can tell me and actually **show** me your feelings instead of hiding them…" He couldn't believe what he was saying. He practically gave her a fucking speech!

'_This isn't like me…I've never really talked this much…especially to a __**girl**__.'_

Sasuke turned to see that Sakura was sleeping.

'_Great!!! I make a huge speech and it was boring enough to put her to sleep!!!'_

But, despite that, he smirked. Sasuke stood up, put his hands in his pockets and walked out of the room, leaving the pink-haired girl to sleep peacefully. As he walked through the hotel hallways, Naruto's words echoed in his head.

"_Make she can even teach you how to __**love**__!!!"_

He sighed heavily.

'_I can't believe this…she's really teaching me things…'_

------------------------------

_**Day 3**_

Sakura woke up in a chair. She stretched and felt her neck was aching.

'_Damn it…I slept in the wrong position…'_

Yesterday, she had fainted while Sasuke was talking. Apparently, he thought she had fallen asleep instead.

'_I wish I hadn't fainted…I really wanted to know what he was telling me! All I heard him say was, "Damn it woman! How can you keep smiling like that?" Freaking cold…I hate it! But, I must not show my gloominess!!! I should be strong!'_

She giggled as she cheered herself on in her mind.

"Ahem…"

Sakura whipped her head to the noise and suddenly felt embarrassed. Shikamaru was leaning against the door with his arms crossed. He was looking at her as if she were crazy.

'_Oh no! I was giggling out loud, and he just HAD to be standing there! Great, Sakura, go on and keep embarrassing yourself!'_

"Um…sorry if I…freaked you out. Uh…is there something you need?" She asked, smiling as usual. He walked into the room causally.

"I need you to help me." He replied. She tilted her head.

"Does this have anything to do with…" Her voice lowered into a faint whisper.

"Ino…?" She asked. He cocked his head to the side and nodded.

"I'll help you. But first, I want to play a quick game of shoji! Sasuke told me you're really good at playing it." Sakura said, taking a shoji board out of her bag. Shikamaru nodded lazily and they both sat down on the floor.

_A few hours later…_

"Wow! You really are good!!! I should practice more!" Sakura said loudly as she packed the board away. Shikamaru sat up triumphantly. Obviously, he won.

"Okay, we played shoji. Now, you. Help me." He said in a half serious tone. The other half was still proud that he won. She nodded.

"What do you want to know about her?" Sakura asked, leaning against the wall. Shikamaru shrugged.

"I guess…what she likes, what she dislikes…and shit like that." He replied. The pink-haired girl let out a small gasp.

"Shika!!! That is **not** how you address things!!! You can't call a girl's feelings shit!!! That's so rude!" She scolded. He sighed.

"Just tell me what I need to know." Shikamaru said, his voice rising slightly.

"Fine…well, she loves red roses, silver bracelets and…butterfly key chains. She hates sea food, cheap jewelry and anything that's scented or tastes like grape." Sakura replied. He nodded and took note on everything in his mental notepad.

"Thanks for the advice. Phew, I was just about to ask her out to the Red Lobster." He said, smiling jokily. She giggled lightly.

"Good luck, Shika!" The pink-haired girl shouted.

"Yea, see you, **Sho**kura." And with that, he closed the door behind him. **(He used 'Sho' from the word 'shoji', since she's pretty good at the game)**

------------------------------

Sakura exited her room and skipped over to the boys' room, where she knew Sasuke was at.

"Hi, Sasuke-kun!" She greeted cheerfully. She sat next to him on his bed and gave him a warm smile.

'_Damn girl…keeps __**smiling**__ like that…'_

Sasuke knew that the smile was probably fake and hiding the pain that everyone had left to go have their own fun time. (Yup, everyone except Sasuke left her at the hotel)

"Sasuke-kun, I just wanted to say…sorry for yesterday. You were talking about something important and I…fainted while you were talking due to this damn cold." She said kindly. Sasuke turned to look at her.

"You…fainted…? I thought you fell asleep…" He said. She giggled cutely.

"There's no way I would fall asleep while you're talking!" Sakura replied. Sasuke looked in the other direction.

"So, what were you saying?" She asked curiously. She needed to know.

"I don't like repeating myself." Sasuke answered emotionlessly, but it was obvious he was teasing her. Sakura pouted.

"But…Sasuke-kun…! I need to know…do you want to make me sad…?" She asked, looking at him with those green, puppy dog eyes. He felt slight guilt in his stomach.

'_If I don't tell her, then she'll keep masking her feelings until the day she dies…but if I do tell her, I'll embarrass myself.'_

And that would ruin his 'precious reputation'.

"The answer is no. I won't tell you what I said yesterday. So, stop pestering me about it." Sasuke said rudely. She began crying anime style tears.

"You're such a meanie, Sasuke-kun!" She yelled, pointing at him accusingly. She clung onto his arm.

"Puh-lease tell me!!!! I'm sorry I fainted while you were talking!!!! Just, tell me!!!" Sakura cried. He shook his head.

"C'mon!!! If it's a secret, I won't tell anyone!!!" She shouted.

"Tch…you're annoying. I won't tell you." Sasuke replied, shaking her off of his arm. She whimpered like an injured puppy.

"Fine! Be…that way…" And she fainted again. Her head dropped on his arm. Sasuke sighed. He could still hear her muttering in her…er…fainted sleep.

"I want to know…" She said quietly. He sighed heavily again, scooped her up bridle style and laid her down on his bed.

'_I'll never get any peace while she's around…'_

Sasuke could see Sakura fidgeting slightly, still muttering things about his 'secret'.

_Knock…knock…_

"Come in…" The raven-haired teen said. The door opened and everyone entered. They could all see Sakura was fast asleep on his bed. Sasuke noticed Ino was holding Shikamaru's hand.

"Teme, what were you _doing_ with her…?" Naruto asked suspiciously. Sasuke growled and hit the blonde's head with much force.

"Idiot, I didn't do anything to her!" He replied. Ten Ten saw that the little cherry blossom was wearing **Sasuke's **sweater.

"Sasuke, why is she wearing **your** sweater?" The brunette asked. Sasuke sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

'_They're acting like my mother…'_

"She got cold. And it's not my sweater anymore. I told her she could keep it since she kept sneezing all over the sleeves." He answered, twitching slightly. There was a small sneezing noise and everyone turned their heads to see the pink-haired girl was awake. Once she saw them, she gave them all a smile.

"Hi guys!" She greeted happily. They waved.

"Forehead, did Sasuke do anything _unsuitable _to you while we were gone?" Ino asked, crossing her arms. Sakura nodded, which caught everyone's attention.

"He won't tell me his secret!" She yelled unhappily. They all sweat dropped anime style.

_She doesn't get it…_

"Uh…okay…anyways, forehead, me and Shikamaru are a couple now!!!" Ino chirped. Sakura clapped.

"Yay, that's really nice to hear!!! Great job, Shika!!" She said, giving him a small wink. He nodded and did a lazy smile. Her attention averted back to Sasuke.

"You still need to tell me…" She said.

"Soon…I'll tell you…soon." Sasuke replied. Sakura smiled at him, but he could sense it wasn't a fake one. She was giving him a true smile. A smile she only reserved for that 'special someone'.

"_Savor all moments…"_

**A/N: Wasn't that sweet? And Sasu-chan is embarrassed to tell Sakura to show her feelings to him! Oh well.**

**Anyways, for all you good cookies out there, please review!!! **

**Review Replies for chapter ****3**

**Ha ha ha…I'm too lazy to reply to your GREAT reviews, so, I'm sorry. I slept at 2 in the morning working on this chapter. **

**But still, don't forget to review!!!**


	5. Sakura Meets Zaku

**A/N: Hello again! I'm really happy about all the reviews I'm getting!!! Thank you all so much!!! I hope to get 100 reviews by chapter 8.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Naruto. (or Fruits Basket!)**

**Chapter 5**

------------------------------

**Day 4**

Sakura was feeling a lot better than she was yesterday. It was probably because of Sasuke's treatment and such. He was a pretty good doctor. Her temperature had thankfully gone down to 99 degrees Fahrenheit and she wasn't dizzy anymore. She skipped towards the elevator. As she entered through the elevator doors, she bumped into someone.

"Um…sorry…" Sakura muttered. She looked up and saw Sasuke. She blushed.

"Sasuke-kun! Ohayo!" The pink-haired girl greeted happily. He nodded in response and helped her back on her feet. Sasuke clicked on the 'lobby' button and the elevator began moving. Peaceful music played in the background. Sakura hummed quietly.

Suddenly, the elevator went to a complete stop, causing Sakura to fall on the floor again.

"Kya…Sasuke-kun, I think the elevator broke!" She said loudly, standing up and leaning on a rail.

"Aa…" He replied as he pressed on the emergency button.

"Hello, this is the elevator assistant of this hotel. Press and hold down the number 2 if you wish to speak with the manager." The recording spoke cheerfully. Sasuke practically slammed the button that read '2'.

"Hi Sasuke-kun!!!" A happy voice yelled.

'_Ino…?'_

"Ino-pig, since when are you the manager…?" Sakura asked uneasily.

"Oh, oh, hi Sakura-chan!!!" Naruto shouted. They twitched.

'_What the hell are they doing in the manager's office!!!???'_

"What are you idiots doing there?" Sasuke questioned, obviously annoyed. Ten Ten grinned widely inside the manager's office.

"The manager is Hinata's father! Anyways, sorry, we can't help you! Just wait until the elevator gets fixed…which will be in about an hour…oh well! Have fun!!!" The brunette chirped before 'hanging up'. Sasuke's fist smashed into the buttons.

"Damn them…damn them all…" He mumbled. Sakura whined.

"What are we supposed to do in here for an hour?!" She shouted, falling onto the floor. A quite…**horny** thought appeared in Sasuke's mind. He shook his head and scolded himself for having such disturbing images. He turned his head to see Sakura leaning on the rail.

"Sasuke-kun, I can't believe they did this to us!!!" She said, huffing angrily. But then, she smiled.

"But I forgive them anyways! I got stuck with you, so I'm not that mad!" Sakura spoke cheerfully with a small tinge of pink on her peachy cheeks. Sasuke crossed his arms.

"I'll tell you what I was saying the other day." He said, refusing to have eye contact with the pink-haired girl.

"Oh!!! Yay!" She cheered like a little girl. She jumped in front of him, so their faces were at least one inch away, but she didn't seem to care, most likely notice. Sasuke felt his breathing growing short.

"Ahem…personal space…" He told her, trying to sound irritated. Sakura blushed and stepped back a bit.

"Gomen, I just got excited is all. Anyways, tell me, please!" She said, grinning. The Uchiha sighed. Then, he looked at her smiling face.

"I told you…that if you're sad or…afraid, you can show your **true** feelings to me instead of masking them with that stupid smile of yours." Sasuke said slowly. She smiled, a true one like yesterday.

"Sasuke-kun, there's no way I can show my sadness in front of you…" Sakura whispered. He narrowed his eyes.

"Why not?" He asked. She gently hugged him.

"Because…I'm never sad when I'm around you…" She replied. Sasuke stood there, unable to move as her hands wrapped around him.

"Sakura…do you…like me…?" He asked.

"Of course, Sasuke-kun, you're my best friend!!!" She replied cheerfully. Sasuke stepped back from her hug. She stared at him.

"That's not what I meant. Do you…**love** me?" Sasuke corrected his past question. Sakura glanced down at the floor and nervously bit her lip.

"A-ano…I…um…I guess I do lov-

_Ding!_

The elevator doors opened. The two were greeted by the group.

"So, how was your 'quality time' together?" Ino asked, nudging Sakura. She blushed a shade of red.

"I-it was nothing really…" The pink-haired girl replied shyly, pointing her fingers together like Hinata. Naruto grinned widely as he took something out from behind his back. It was a tape and video camera. Sasuke gaped at them and tried snatching them away from the fox boy.

"Ha, teme! We taped the whole thing!!!" The blond cheered as he ran around from the fuming Uchiha.

"W-what?! Why'd you tape it!!!???" Sakura yelled. Ten Ten chuckled lightly.

"To put on myspace of course!" She answered in a matter-of-factly tone.

------------------------------

"Ah! Sweet victory!" Naruto sighed. He slipped the tape into his bag and grinned.

"Well, I better get back to the lobby before they ditch!" The blond yelled energetically. He skipped over to the door and opened it. A figure crashed into him and the two tumbled to the carpet floor. Naruto got up as he dusted his pants with his hands. He looked down at the other person.

"N-N-N-N-Naruto-kun…! I'm so s-s-s-s-sorry…!!!" A voice squeaked. Naruto would recognize that voice from anywhere. He helped Hinata back up.

"Hinata-chan? What're you doing here?" He asked, completely clueless. Hinata gave him a light smile.

"T-the others wanted me to c-c-check on you since you w-w-w-were taking too l-long…" She said shyly, hating herself for her stuttering. He grabbed her wrist.

"Well, we better get going!" Naruto shouted, and with that, they both dashed out of the hotel room.

------------------------------

_**Lobby…**_

Thankfully, Ino came on time and they were all set to go. They were going to the movies to watch 'Hairspray'. How they got the guys to actually agree was a total mystery. Ino dragged poor Shikamaru through the sidewalks.

"I heard that this movie was really good." Ten Ten said. Hinata nodded.

"Y-yes…my younger s-s-sister said it's 'awesome'." The female Hyuuga quoted, blushing. Naruto jumped around as he held onto Hinata's hand.

"This is so cool! I can't wait to watch! Woo!" He cheered happily. The others sweat dropped, but Sakura laughed.

"Naruto-kun, you're so funny to be around!" The pink-haired teen said. Ten Ten stared at her, but waved it off after awhile.

"Sak, we can always count on you to brighten up the day!" She replied.

------------------------------

"Eight tickets to the movie 'Hairspray' please!!!" Naruto yelled in a hyper tone. The person at the stand eyed Naruto strangely as they swapped tickets for money. The group trotted over to the snack line.

Ino and Shikamaru both bought themselves each a cherry flavored slushie and they were going to share a pack of nachos. Ten Ten and Neji didn't get anything. Naruto got a large popcorn and Coke, while Hinata only bought herself a pack of gummy worms. Sakura and Sasuke were going to share a medium popcorn.

They all entered the slightly crowded theater and took seats in the very front row. **(A/N: I watched the movie, but I missed the first five minutes!) :( **

_**Towards the end of the movie…**_

_**Tracy and Link held each other as the people in the background danced to the music. They both leaned in and slowly…their lips met into a passionate kiss.**_

Sakura reached over to take a piece of popcorn. Romance just made her nervous, especially when she was sitting next to Sasuke.

Sasuke, on the other hand, felt that the movie was cheesy and…dumb.

'_There's no way a guy like him would fall for that fat ass…what a crappy movie…I'm hungry…'_

He reached over for some popcorn only to feel…

Sakura's hand.

Once she felt his hand touch hers, her whole face felt red and her heart skipped a beat. Quickly, the two withdrew their hands.

"Gomen…" The pink-haired girl said shyly. Sasuke shrugged it off and continued to munch on the popcorn.

Soon, the credits started to show. Ino jumped up from her seat and yawned.

"What a romantic movie! God, I'm tired!" The blonde yelled, stretching her arms. They all exited the theater. Sakura was silent. The memory of her and Sasuke accidentally touching hands was pretty embarrassing and was causing her to blush unconsciously. Naruto tilted his head.

"Sakura-chan, is something wrong?" He asked, clueless as usual. She shook her head furiously.

"N-no…! I'm fine!" She answered quickly. Ino rose an eyebrow.

"Forehead, _what happened_?" She asked suspiciously. Sakura held her hands up in defense.

"N-nothing out of the ordinary!!! I-I mean we didn't do _it_ if that's what you're thinking!!" The pink-haired girl shouted nervously and quickly. Ino grabbed her arm and dragged her to a nearby table.

"Okay, forehead, what happened between you and Sasuke?" She asked, crossing her arms.

'_Gee…she's so bossy…'_

Sakura heaved out a long sigh.

"Um…it's simple really. We both reached for the popcorn at the same time and touched hands. Happy?" She admitted. It might sound 'simple' to Ten Ten or Hinata, but to Yamanaka Ino, this was one of the happiest moments of her life. The blonde squealed out loud.

"Oh my god!!! Sakura, those are _signs_, okay? You hear me, SIGNS!? Those are signs of a perfect romance between you and Sasuke! Take a chance!" She yelled desperately. Sakura rose an eyebrow.

"What exactly do you mean by, a 'chance'?" She asked. She had a very bad feeling that Ino was going to say something…well, bad.

"I mean: Tell him you him, then he'll admit it too! Then, you two run off to a bed or something and-!"

"Ino! I think I know the rest!" Sakura interrupted, annoyed and blushing at the same time. Ino grinned sheepishly.

"Sorry, just got a little carried away there. _Anyways_, take the chance and tell him!" She replied, with a determined face. Sakura sighed.

"Ino-pig, he's not like that. I bet tons of girls admit their love to him. He might probably shoo me off." She said, her voice containing hints of sorrow and despair. Ino put a hand on her best friend's shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile.

"I'm glad you showed me your true feelings. And, you're right, around Sasuke, you're always happy." She said, reminding Sakura about the tape and the video camera.

"Well, we better get back. I think Sasuke's eyeing you…" The blonde said, giving her a good luck wink. Sakura gulped and skipped over by Sasuke's side.

"What did she want to talk to you about?" The raven-haired teen asked as he coolly slipped his hands into his pockets. She put a finger over her mouth and smiled.

"Ne, Sasuke-kun, it's a secret!" She whispered. He rolled his eyes.

"Fine…but remember, I told you my so called, 'secret'." He reminded. She nodded.

"I know! I'll tell you one of my secrets one day!" Sakura teased. As she skipped in front of him, she had no idea where she was going and bumped into someone. She turned around and saw a male teen on the floor. She quickly helped him up.

"Kya, I'm so sorry!" Sakura said loudly. Sasuke, once again, rolled his eyes.

"Clumsy baka." He muttered under his breath. But his attention span widened when he saw the boy give her a lustful grin.

"Usually, I would get mad at someone who made me fall on the ground. But, for you, I'll make an exception, since you're so cute. By the way, I'm Zaku." He replied, taking her hand and kissing it like a gentlemen would. Sakura blushed lightly, but in her head, she wanted so much to run away from him. She glanced uneasily at Sasuke. Even more, she wanted to be rescued by Sasuke. Sakura shyly withdrew her hand from his grasp.

"A-ano…I have to get going…" She said quietly. But Zaku took her wrist.

"Hm? So soon? Don't you want to have fun with a bad boy like me? I'll give you _a lot_ of _good_ things and send _pleasure _in your body…" He said, grinning when he saw her face turning red. Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

"Sorry, she doesn't have the time." The Uchiha interrupted with a sarcastic tone. He quickly flicked Zaku's hand off of her wrist and took it instead. He dragged her with him back to the group.

Sasuke glanced over his shoulder to see Zaku glaring at him. He twitched with annoyance.

'_I have a bad feeling this won't be the last time I see him…'_

He looked towards Sakura, who was smiling and talking with Ten Ten, and acted as if that never happened.

'_I know for sure this is going to include Sakura…'_

------------------------------

The eight friends all sighed in unison inside the boys' room.

"What a tiring day…" Sakura muttered as she slammed her face into a nearby pillow. The girls nodded.

"Yeah…but it was fun!" Ino said, trying to cheer everyone up. They all groaned in reply.

"I'm going to take a nice, relaxing shower…" The pink-haired girl said as she stood up and walked next door to go inside the bathroom. Once the door was closed, everyone huddled around Sasuke, who had his eyes closed at the moment.

'_I wonder why that Zaku bastard was being so eager with Sakura…stupid son of a bitch. Now I'm worrying about __**her**__…'_

When he felt a disturbing aura around him, he cracked an eye open, only to meet the stares of six people. Sasuke glared at them.

"What?" He said. Naruto grinned.

"We want to know what's up with you and Sakura-chan…" He said, his grin growing wider with each second. Sasuke twitched. He hated it how the group always referred to them as a 'couple'.

"We're just really close friends, okay? So stop pestering me about that subject." He replied, stoic as ever. Ino crossed her arms and gave him a stern look.

"Sasuke, you're so…weird! Isn't it obvious she likes you? And it's pretty obvious that you like her!" The blonde said loudly.

"I don't like her…" He said in a semi stubborn tone.

"Pft, whatever…you'll regret it when she starts dating some California hottie." Ten Ten said, making a small gesture with her hand. An image of Zaku and Sakura lacing hands together appeared in his mind. Sasuke unconsciously clenched his fists.

"She can go with whoever she wants. I won't care. But if she's not careful, she'll get in a lot of trouble." The Uchiha answered back. Naruto sighed.

"That's why **you** should start going out with her. You can protect her from shitty guys who try touching her." He pointed out. The image of Sasuke slaughtering perverts was pretty amusing.

"Going out with her would cause…complications. Besides, we're exact opposites." Sasuke muttered.

"Uchiha, you're so dense." Neji replied, smirking. He was about to protest when the door opened. Sakura smiled at them brightly.

"Hi guys. So, what were you talking about?" She asked happily as she plopped down to sit next to Sasuke. Ino smiled.

"Oh, Sasuke was just explaining-!"

Sasuke slammed a hand over her blabbering mouth. She glared at him and bit the flesh of his hand. The Uchiha angrily brought his hand back.

"Damn woman…bit my hand…" He mumbled. Shikamaru snorted.

"Serves you right…" He said lazily. Sakura giggled lightly as she took his hand in hers and massaged it gently.

"Sasuke-kun, does that make you feel better?" She asked with a caring smile. He stared at her for awhile as she continued nursing his hand. The happy stares of his friends annoyed him, but for some reason, he couldn't find himself to tell Sakura to back off.

"Aa…" Sasuke replied. Ino, Ten Ten and Hinata cooed at the little moment between the two. Being clueless, like Naruto, Sakura continued what she was doing, unaware of all the glad stares she was getting. Sasuke pulled his hand back and grabbed her wrist, dragging her out of the hotel room and in front of the door.

"Remember that 'secret' I told you about 'showing your feelings'?" Sasuke asked. Sakura nodded.

"Well, it's your turn for you to tell me your secret." He said, smirking at her shocked reaction.

"Sasuke-kun…!" She whined unhappily, her face burying into his chest.

"Okay, I'll ask again. Sakura, do you love me?" Sasuke asked, looking down only to see her pale, pink hair.

The two teens were unaware of the people pressing their ears against the door.

Sakura fidgeted nervously.

"_Take a chance!"_

Ino's words replayed and echoed in her head. To her blonde friends, it must be easy to admit love to a boy. But for her, it was like being dared to eat a vomit flavored jelly bean. (Which actually exists, I've eaten it)

"A-ano…I…um…" She stuttered, looking for the right words to say. Ino was urging to slam the door open and force Sakura to shout 'I love you!' to the Uchiha. The long pause made everyone nervous and anxious for the pink-haired cherry blossom.

But the event that happened next, was something no one would have expected.

**A/N: Ooh…cliff hanger! I'm sorry!!! Anyways, leave a nice review please, it would make my boring summer a lot brighter!!!**

**Review Replies for chapter 4:**

**Ha ha! I was not lazy today! Well…it's 12:30 in the morning…and yet, I am hyper! Okay, on with the replies!!!**

**Izari'x0x'Kari.Melody****: Yay, you were the first to review for chapter 4! I don't really mind if the review is rushed or short, just as long as you did review, I'm perfectly happy! Thank you!**

**kawaiiblossom94: Here, (hands over Sasuke sweater), is a copy of Sasuke's sweater. Happy? Okay, anyways, thanks you for the review!!! **

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**pandagirl08: Fruits Basket is such an inspiring manga! Which couple so you prefer, Kyo and Tohru, or Yuki and Tohru? I love the KyoxTohru couple!!! squeals Thanks for the review!!!**

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**ReiStar: Sorry! I was just so…lazy. Thanks for the compliments, and yes, I agree. There are a lot of idiotic stories. **

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**chocolateangel5: Yes, as you may have noticed, the chapters are shorter…and you also may have noticed I've been getting lazier…oh well. Sakura is full of lessons to teach little Sasuke-kun. Thanks for the review!**

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**:): Thanks! I love how Sakura is so sweet and innocent! It's so fun to write about! Thanks for reviewing, my fateful good, cookie:D**

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**Thank you for those who reviewed! You make me all so happy!!!**


	6. The Mistakes

**A/N: Hello my fellow readers!! Not much to say here…**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Naruto! (or Fruits Basket!)**

**Chapter 6**

**------------------------------**

_But the event that happened next, was something no one would have expected._

Footsteps were heard as Sakura and Sasuke both turned around to see none other than…Zaku, standing before them. The pink-haired girl let out a small gasp.

"Whoa, hello! I didn't expect _you_ to be here!" Zaku said, his voice full of surprise as he grinned at Sakura. He looked at Sasuke and nodded in greeting. The Uchiha glared in reply.

"You, chicken ass hair, do you mind if I talk to her, in private…?" He asked, smirking. Sasuke's glare intensified.

"Actually, yes, I would mind…" He answered. The two seemed to lock into a staring contest, and poor Sakura, was the cause of this mess. She looked at Sasuke with reassuring eyes.

"Sasuke-kun, I think I can handle myself." She said as kindly as he could. He snorted.

"No, you can't. You're too naïve." Sasuke said coldly. She placed her hands on her hips and was about to protest, when Zaku interrupted her.

"Yeah, _Sasuke-kun_, besides, it'll only take a minute." He said in a semi teasing tone.

"Fine, but, don't try anything nasty." The Uchiha spat as he walked back into the boys' hotel room. Sakura suddenly felt nervous. The thought of her alone with the sly Zaku was scaring her a bit, but she tried to act cheerful as usual.

"So…Z-Zaku-san, what did you want to t-talk about…?" She asked, pointing her fingers together.

"Oh, I was wondering if you want to go to dinner with me tomorrow. No where too formal, just downstairs." He said, surprisingly, kindly. The pink-haired girl managed a smile.

"O-okay…um…I'll be there…at…um…seven…?" Sakura suggested. He nodded, and gently took her hand.

"I'll see you then…" Zaku placed another kiss upon her hand and left. He was such a gentlemen sometimes…but she wasn't deceived by his manners. Slowly, she reentered the boys' room and sank into a chair. Sasuke rose an eyebrow.

"So? What did he want?" He asked, his voice was slightly angry. Sakura smiled.

"He just said he lost his camera, and if I found it, he wants me to return it to him. That's all." She lied. He cast a suspicious look at her, but finally, waved it off.

------------------------------

"Mm! Hinata, this picnic idea was great!" Naruto complimented as he bit into an onigiri. Hinata blushed and nodded in reply. Sakura looked around nervously as she ate some sushi. She still felt bad about lying to Sasuke.

The trees around the group swayed slightly with the blowing wind.

Sakura looked down at the remaining sushi in her bento. She unconsciously poked them with her wooden chopsticks. Ino eyed her carefully.

"Forehead, is something wrong?" The blonde asked, concerned about her best friend. The pink-haired girl was pulled out of her thoughts. She smiled at Ino and shook her head.

"I'm fine, Ino-pig!" She replied.

"Are you sure? You look nervous and you didn't eat much!" Ino pointed out, looking at Sakura's sushi. There was still a lot left.

"I guess I'm not so hungry…" Sakura said, sighing.

'_This is all my fault…why couldn't I just say 'no' to Zaku…?'_

------------------------------

As usual, Sakura would go take a shower. The group focused their conversation on her.

"Don't you think she's been acting weird?" Ten Ten asked everyone. They all nodded in response. Neji narrowed his eyes.

"I think it was after that meeting with that bastard…" He muttered, as Sasuke had told him.

"Sakura said nothing major happened." The Uchiha said, not making eye contact with anyone.

"B-but you all know how H-Hime is…" Hinata replied, pointing her fingers together. They nodded. Even if they only knew her for five days now, they knew so much about her. She was the type who hid her feelings. She never liked to be sad in front of others, especially her friends.

"Yeah, we better keep an eye on her…and Zaku." Shikamaru stated.

------------------------------

Sakura dried her pink locks, changed into a white skirt and pink shirt, than sat in front of the mirror to do her hair.

'_Whatever happens…I can't let my friends see me going out with Zaku…'_

She tied her hair back and put on little heart trinkets on the messy bun in her hair. The pink-haired girl sighed heavily and rested her chin in her hands.

'_I wonder what Sasuke would say if he saw me with Zaku-san…'_

Sakura banged her head on the desk.

'_What have I gotten myself into…?!'_

Slowly, and quite uneasily, she put everything that was necessary into her small, glittery purse and walked out the door. She bumped into someone.

"Kya! I'm sor-Sasuke-kun?!" She yelled, getting up and brushing her skirt. He noticed she wasn't in her PJs.

'_Where the hell is she going?!'_

"Why are you dressed like that?" Sasuke asked, giving her a slight glare. She fidgeted.

"Um...just…going downstairs!" Sakura said in defense.

'_Man…that was a lame excuse!'_

"Whatever, just be careful." He warned as he she nodded and walked off quickly. He sensed something was terribly wrong.

'_It probably includes Zaku…'_

Sakura hurried out of the elevator and ahead, she saw Zaku, eyeing her with a…lusty look. She gulped nervously as she advanced towards him.

"Hello…Sakura-**chan**. You look very lovely." He said, bowing down. Apparently, he was in his 'gentlemen' mood. Sakura blushed shyly. Zaku gently took her hand. Once they got to a table, he pulled a seat back for her and she sat down.

"T-thank you, Zaku-san." She whispered. Zaku nodded as the waiter set two menus on the table. Everything was so elegant, and it made Sakura feel…awkward.

'_I hope Sasuke-kun doesn't come by…'_

She bit into a breadstick and slowly swallowed it down. Her throat was unusually dry. She would often shift her eyes from the menu to Zaku, just in case he was up to something.

"So…Zaku-san…what kind of person are you exactly?" Sakura finally spoke, filling in the silence and trying to start a conversation. The said teen leaned back into his chair and grinned at her.

"Well…I'm sometimes a gentlemen…and sometimes, a real **bad boy**." He replied, still grinning. She only stared at him.

'_Well, I already knew that!'_

"Um…do you have any hobbies?" She asked.

"I enjoy…looking at girls, you, for example." Zaku answered, the devilish tone in his voice. She wanted to gag.

"T-thank you…?" She said uneasily. He cupped her chin in his hand and smirked.

"Ahem, your orders." The waiter interrupted, glancing at the two. He carefully placed down a plate of spaghetti in front of them. Sakura rose an eyebrow.

"Z-Zaku-san…why is there only **one** plate…?" She questioned, already fearing the worst. He picked up two forks and handed one to her.

"You know the story in 'Lady and the Tramp.'" Zaku replied, eating some of the noodles. Sakura blushed.

'_Now what do I do?!'_

Slowly, and full of caution, she ate. There was a knot building up in her stomach, and it wasn't because of the food. Zaku would often stop eating just to watch her intently. He was defiantly up to something.

"Hm…looks like there's only one noodle left. Let's share it." He suggested. Sakura hesitated.

"What's wrong, baby? Wanna 'talk' about something?" Zaku asked. Before she could protest, he had already grabbed her hand and dragged her into a corner. Sakura wanted to run, but his grip was too tight. He pushed her against the wall.

'_No!'_

"Z-Zaku-san…! Don't…" She started. Sakura closed her eyes as the bastard rose her shirt over her head.

"Back off." A low voice said. Sakura let out a small gasp and turned to see Sasuke there, glaring intensely.

"Make me, you b-OOF!" Zaku's sentence was silenced with a hard punch by Sasuke. The teen fell to the floor, unconscious. The Uchiha grabbed Sakura's wrist and brought her to the elevator.

"Sasuke-kun…I'm sorry…I…"

"What the hell were you thinking?! I told you to be careful!!! That bastard was going to take advantage of you!" He yelled. Sakura shrunk in her spot.

"I'm really sorry…" She muttered.

"Well, apology **not** accepted! I'm as angry as hell now, Sakura! Look at the trouble you get yourself into!! You're a burden to everyone around you!" Sasuke shouted angrily. By now, the poor pink-haired girl had tears rolling down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry!"

_Ding…_

Once, the elevator doors opened, she ran out.

"_You're a burden to everyone around you!"_

"_You're a burden to everyone around you!"_

"_You're a burden to everyone around you!"_

'_Is what he said…really true…?'_

------------------------------

**Day 5:**

"Good morning, Sak and Hina!" Ten Ten shouted as she sat up and stretched on her bed. Hinata sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"Y-yes…good morning…" She whispered. Sakura stood up and walked to the bathroom.

"Yeah…morning." She said as she slammed the bathroom door behind her. The brunette rose an eyebrow.

"Whoa, Sak is unusually gloomy today. Hina, what do you think happened to her?" Ten Ten asked. Hinata pointed her fingers together nervously.

"I-I think it may have to d-d-do with that boy from yesterday…" She replied. Ten Ten crossed her arms.

"I wonder what he did to her…"

------------------------------

"Sakura-chan! Hi, Sakura-chan!" Naruto chimed as they all met in the lobby, as usual. Sakura smiled.

"Uh…hi." She muttered, giving a small wave.

"Sakura-chan, is something wrong?" He asked. Sasuke narrowed his eyes as he remembered yesterday.

'_Maybe I went a little too far…?'_

"N-no…I'm fine, really." She answered back, still smiling. The elevator gave a 'ding!' and Ino came in skipping.

"Hello, everyone! So, what do we have planned today?" The cheerful blonde asked.

"I don't know…oh! But I know what we can do tomorrow! I heard they're going to have fireworks at the beach tomorrow night!" Naruto shouted, happily. Sakura glanced down sadly at the floor.

"That's so cool! Oh, I heard they're having some play at some high school today! Let's check it out!" Ten Ten suggested. They all nodded and left the hotel. Sakura tried to keep her distance from Sasuke as much as possible.

------------------------------

_Towards the end of the play…_

"You're burden to everyone, princess! Now, report back to the castle!" The knight yelled at the girl dressed in a flowery pink dress. Sakura flinched at the man's words. It reminded her of what Sasuke said.

The princess disobeyed him and stayed on the battle field, using a large sword to kill any enemies.

"No, I will stay and fight! This is my kingdom and I will do well to protect it!" She said loudly. A large man was about to attack her from behind. The lights went out and there was a man's scream. The lights went on again and there was the knight with an axe lodged into his stomach. Apparently, he had protected the princess from getting killed. He coughed out fake blood.

"I-I told you…you're a burden…" He mumbled as he fell to the floor, with a smirk on his face.

Sakura couldn't take it anymore, she stood up from her seat and dashed out of the room.

"Sak?! Where are you going?!" Ten Ten yelled as she followed her. The rest of the group went outside too. They found the girl trembling with tears on a bench. Sasuke cocked his head to the side.

"Forehead!!! Oh my god, why are you crying?! Was the play that sad?!" Ino shouted as she ran over to give her best friend a hug. The boys went towards Sasuke.

"Dude, what happened?" Shikamaru asked the Uchiha.

"How should I know?" He shrugged.

------------------------------

_The girls' hotel room…_

"Feeling better?" Ino asked as she patted Sakura's shoulder. The pink-haired girl nodded as she wiped her eyes with a tissue. The blonde smiled as she exited the room and went next door where everyone else was.

Sakura sighed.

"_I'm never sad when I'm around you…"_

'_What was I thinking?! I'm an idiot! I should've said 'no' to Zaku! Now, Sasuke-kun hates me and he'll probably never talk to me again!'_

The girl wiped away some tears from her green eyes. She glanced at her empty bag and sadly smiled.

'_I think I should…go now…'_

Sakura packed all her things carefully and slowly. She zipped her bag closed.

Sakura wrote a quick note, put it on the desk and made her way out of the room.

She rushed out of the hotel doors and called a cab. A yellow car finally stopped. The man in the taxi tipped his black hat and asked her where her destination was.

"The airport, please…" She replied, gloomily. She slowly put on her seatbelt. The car jerked forward and started running. Sakura looked out the window and gazed at the hotel, before it finally went out of view.

'_Sasuke-kun…I think it will be better this way…'_

**The boys' room…**

"How is she?" Ten Ten asked. Ino sighed.

"She's better, but she won't tell me what happened! Sasuke, can you go ask her?" Ino said.

"No." Sasuke replied, crossing his arms and leaning back into his chair.

"Please, Sasuke! She won't listen to me, but I know for sure she'll listen to you!!!" The blonde pleaded. Sasuke shook his head.

"Fine…" Ino sighed, defeated. She paced around the room.

"What's wrong with her…?" She would mumble very few seconds. Ino let out a dramatic gasp and covered her mouth with her hands.

"Ten Ten! What's the date today???!!!" Ino asked.

'_I'm so stupid for not noticing! I'm so sorry, Sakura…!!!'_

"It's Friday…" The brunette stated. Ino growled.

"Not the **day**!!! The **date**, the **DATE**!" She yelled angrily. Ten Ten backed up from the blonde.

"Um…July 20…" She replied. Ino looked at the floor.

"So tomorrow's the day…" She muttered. They all had question marks over their heads.

"Hm? What's tomorrow?" Neji asked. Ino sighed. Her eyes showed sadness.

"Tomorrow…is the anniversary of Sakura's parent's **death**…"

**A/N: Sasuke must feel horrible about yelling at Sakura when the anniversary of her parent's death was near!!! Then again, I could be wrong! Oh, but what's he going to do when he finds out Sakura's heading back to Tokyo!?**

**Things I Want to Make Clear:**

**Are Sasuke's parents still alive? **_**Yes, they're alive. **_

**Is Itachi (if he shows up at all in this fanfic) evil? **_**Hm…he's not really EVIL, but to Sasuke, he is!**_

**Are they still going to school? **_**Yea…they're on summer break!!!**_

**Are Sasuke's parents (or Itachi) going to show up in this fic? **_**Mikoto will defiantly make an appearance later on, but I'm not so sure about Fugaku and Itachi…**_

**Okay, I'm too lazy to reply to **_**everyone's **_**reviews, so I'll make this quick!**

_**Quick**_** Review Replies:**

**Thanks you to, XxSuicidal-CupcakexX, yourdarkdesire **(you guessed right!)**:), purpleface14, Mariegurl **(I'll be sure to read it soon!!!)**, Freedomstar999, (anon. person), Lori Shank, Dark Shining Light, L is 4 LOVE, Yuki's Little Girl, niwichan2468, Sakura-hime9, kee-chan, konoha.chick91, 9081, daisherz365, sessygirl648, mandy, chocolateangel5!!!**

**If I misspelled your name, or forgot your name, tell me in the review you are about to send! (please review!)**

**To those who did not review, you made me so sad!!! Please review!!!**


	7. Lavender Fireworks

**A/N: Sigh…school is starting soon and I'm going to enter seventh grade!!! That means, I'll be updating slower! Sorry…**

**Writing this chapter was a bit…fun! When I finished the chapter and reread it, I almost cried. It seemed a bit…sad. I was starting to feel regretful. **

**Warning: This chapter has drama and some…cheesy romance.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Naruto! (or Fruits Basket!)**

**Chapter 7**

**------------------------------**

"Her parents…death…?" Neji asked, eyes slightly widened. Ino glumly nodded.

"Yeah, her parents died a year ago in a car crash. I was her best friend, so I took the liberty of paying for her apartment." She replied, avoiding eye contact.

"Sasuke, I really think you should go cheer her up…" Ten Ten said sadly. But the group saw that Sasuke was already gone.

------------------------------

Sasuke knocked on the door. There wasn't any reply.

'_She's mad at me…but it was my fault! I'm such an idiot for shouting at her when the anniversary of her parent's death was near!'_

He quickly knocked again. There still wasn't any reply.

'_Damn it!'_

He opened the door and widened his onyx eyes when he saw that Sakura was no where in sight. Sasuke walked next to her bed and saw a note on the side desk.

'_Sasuke-kun…_

_I'm sorry for upsetting you so much._

_I'm going back to Tokyo, I'm really sorry for just running away like this. _

_I hope you have a nice summer…_

_Love, Sakura…'_

His hand quivered slightly. He slowly reread the note. After finally getting the situation through his mind, he ran out of the room and back next door.

"You guys, look at this…" Sasuke said, showing them the note. Ino's eyes stung.

"N-no…! We have to stop her!" She said loudly. Ten Ten nodded.

"C'mon, let's go!"

------------------------------

Sakura paid the taxi driver and walked towards the airport. The air was unusually chilly and her breath was visible as she exhaled. She clutched tightly on her bag as she entered the warm airport building.

She bought her ticket, with Ino's money and sat down on a cozy chair.

'_This is it…I'm going home…'_

Sakura glanced out the large window next to her and sighed.

'_I'll never see Sasuke-kun again…'_

But, despite the empty pit in her stomach, she managed a small, sad smile.

'_It's better this way…'_

------------------------------

"No, let her be." Sasuke interrupted their plans with a cold voice. They all stared at him.

"B-but…teme…are you…serious?" Naruto asked. The Uchiha nodded.

"If she wants to leave, let her leave. It has nothing to do with us. She probably only wants to visit her parent's grave. She'd rather be in Tokyo than stay here with us." He reasoned, crossing his arms sternly. Shikamaru, who was holding Sakura's note at the moment, clutched the note for a second before loosening his grip.

"Uchiha, I might not know much about this romance crap, but I know, for a fact that Haruno **loves** you." He said. Ino nodded, supporting her boyfriend's words.

"Yeah, Sasuke, she does love you. Look at the note. It's addressed to **you**." The blonde said. Sasuke glanced quietly at the note in Shikamaru's hands. It was true, he couldn't deny that.

"Sasuke, haven't you ever felt…something more for her…?" Ten Ten asked.

"No." He replied, quite simply.

"But…are you just going to let her go? Are you going to risk not ever seeing her again?" Neji questioned. Damn the Hyuuga for being so reasonable with words. Sasuke hated it when they made him seem like the bad guy.

"…"

"S-Sasuke-san…please don't throw this a-a-a-away…please…don't a-act like you don't c-care…" Hinata whispered, looking down at her feet as she spoke.

"Stop making me feel guilty. Let the damn girl have it her way. I don't give a fuck if she runs away or not. I don't care if I won't be able to see her again…" Sasuke replied angrily. Ino wanted to slap him on the spot.

"You're a bastard! Aren't you going to miss seeing her smiling face or hearing her laugh?! Why don't you have any feelings…?!" Ino yelled, glaring daggers at him.

"_Savor all moments…even the smallest ones…"_

"_I'm never sad when I'm around you…"_

"_I guess I do love-!" 'Ding!'_

"_I'm sorry!"_

Her smile…her laugh…it was beginning to haunt him…

"Teme, stop being so stubborn…and…and…S-Sasuke…?" Naruto trailed off when he saw the Uchiha's eyes filling with despair and sadness. They thought for a moment Sasuke was going to start crying. But…Uchihas never cry.

'_Memories…I don't ever want to forget them…even if they're the sad ones…'_

He looked again at Sakura's note.

'_I've realized…'_

"…Fine…we'll go for her…"

'_I'd be __**nothing**__ without you…'_

Ino squinted her tear filled eyes and smiled. She wiped away the fallen tears with her palm.

"Okay…let's go now…" She said quietly. Neji and Shikamaru smirked as the girls (and Naruto) quietly cried their hearts out.

'_Sakura…'_

------------------------------

"_**Flight 20 for Tokyo will be leaving in 30 minutes. I repeat, flight 20 for Tokyo, Japan will be leaving in 30 minutes. I suggest that people board the plane soon."**_

Sakura fidgeted in her seat. Soon, she would be leaving her friends behind.

_10 minutes later…_

Slowly, Sakura stood up, picked up her bag and walked towards to where the plane for Tokyo was. This was it. The gate to regret was in front of her. She gulped as she entered the plane.

_18 minutes later…_

Sakura was now in a plane seat and looking out the window. No matter how hard she tried to forget, her thoughts were drifting towards Sasuke.

……………………………………….

"Excuse me! Where's the flight to Tokyo, Japan??" Ino asked, panting, in front of an assistant lady. The lady smiled kindly.

"It's flight 20. Go down that hall straight and go to your left…hurry up, it's going to leave in about two minutes." She replied. The group dashed off.

Ten Ten checked her watch as they ran.

"We have to run faster!" The brunette informed. They sprinted down the hall and finally saw the large gate to Tokyo.

The guard in front was about to close it.

"Wait! We have to get inside!" Ino yelled. The guard eyed her.

"Sorry, miss, but the plane is on the verge of leaving." He replied.

"Please! We have a friend on there!" She begged. Sasuke stepped up.

"Move." He commanded with a cold voice and a deep glare. The guard tensed and nodded, letting them go right through.

"The plane is about to leave. Hold tight! And-hey!" The flight lady on the microphone was interrupted. Sakura peered over curiously. Her eyes widened when she saw Sasuke and the gang there.

"Sakura!" Ten Ten shouted, hugging her.

"Um…excuse me. This plane is about to leave. I would advice you to get off." The lady said.

"Tell the pilot to hold on for a sec!" Naruto shouted as he snatched Sakura's bag.

"Naruto, give that back! I'm going back to Tokyo, so don't bother trying to stop me!" Sakura said loudly.

"You know, you could've just told us." Sasuke said.

"W-what do you mean…?" Sakura asked nervously. He stepped forward.

"You should've told us the anniversary of your parent's death was near…" The raven-haired teen said. Sakura glanced at the floor.

"I…I'm sorry…" She muttered. The other people in the plane stared at them intently, waiting for one of them to talk.

"No…I'm sorry…for…shouting at you…" Sasuke replied, not believing what he was saying.

"You shouted at her?!" Ino yelled, pulling up her sleeve. Ten Ten quickly calmed the blonde down.

"But…you guys are wasting your time here…because I'm not going back." Sakura said, in a slightly determined tone.

"Forehead, you have to come back!!! It'll be boring without you!!" Ino wailed. The pink-haired girl gave them a small smile.

"Sorry, but I've made up my mind." She replied, taking her bag back from Naruto and turning around to sit back in her seat. But Sasuke grabbed her wrist.

"Look, Sakura, I made a horrible mistake. And I'm really sorry about what I did, okay?" He said. She looked away from him.

"I'm not leaving because you shouted at me **or** the death of my parents." She answered back. Sasuke rose an eyebrow.

"Then, why are you leaving?" He asked.

"Because…**I'm **the one who made the mistake. I said yes to Zaku…and all those times I tried telling you I love…never mind. Just, let me go now." She said, trying to get out of Sasuke's tight grip. But to everyone's surprise, he didn't let go. Slowly, he pulled her into an embrace. The people in the plane 'awww'ed.

"I don't want you to leave." Sasuke whispered into her ear. Sakura let the tears roll down her cheeks. She returned the hug and smiled.

"I've realized…without you, I'm nothing." He said.

The flight lady behind them wiped a tear from her eye.

"Please…leave now." She ordered sadly. The group nodded. Naruto took Sakura's bag. They quietly walked out of the plane.

------------------------------

After Sakura unpacked everything, she skipped over next door into the boys' room. It had become their favorite meeting place in the hotel, as you may now have noticed.

"So…what do we have planned today…?" Ino asked.

"The fireworks are at 9:00 tonight at the beach. I think we should just relax for the afternoon and go to the beach at around…7:00." Ten Ten suggested. They nodded in agreement.

Ten Ten glanced over at Sakura, who was sitting quietly on a chair by the window, the sunlight on her face and pink hair. The brunette looked at Sasuke, who was across from Sakura. He looked more stoic than usual. Apparently, they were avoiding each other, due to the small 'incident'.

"Ino, look at Sak and Sasuke." She whispered to Ino. She saw they were far apart and sighed.

"They act like little kids…" She muttered. The blonde stood up.

"Sasuke, Sakura, stop sulking and be friends again! Geez…you guys are so…so…**troublesome**…" Ino said, earning a small snort from Shikamaru. Sakura looked down at her feet. Sasuke glanced at Sakura before stubbornly cocking his head to the side. The rest of the group sweat dropped anime style.

"Aw…c'mon, teme, go cheer her up like you always do!!!" Naruto cheered, nudging the Uchiha.

"Hn." Sasuke replied, not moving from his spot.

"Uchiha, get over it. She's here now, so at least go and talk to her." Neji said impatiently.

"Before, I told you bastards to let her go…but you wouldn't listen." He replied, loud enough for Sakura to hear. She felt her eyes sting slightly.

'_He…didn't want me back…?'_

'_But…it's not like I wanted him to retrieve me!!! I wanted to go back to Tokyo! Right…?'_

"_I've realized…without you, I'm nothing…"_

Were those all empty words? Did they have any true feelings in them?

"Teme, you confessed you'd be nothing without her…but…you're not talking to her at all…" Naruto said sadly. Sakura listened carefully to the conversation.

"And before, I also said, I don't give a fuck if she leaves." Sasuke replied rudely. Sakura stood up from her seat.

"Excuse me…" She muttered before she closed the door behind her. She walked next door and fell onto her bed. She threw the sheets over her and cried.

'_He didn't care…he didn't care at all…'_

"Look what you did, Sasuke! For all we know, she might be trying to run away again!" Ino yelled angrily, stomping towards the raven-haired teen. His face showed no emotion.

"Go say sorry to her, **now**!" The blonde commanded, pointing at the door. The two locked into a deep staring contest. Finally, Sasuke murmured a, 'fine', and walked out the door.

He could hear Sakura's sobs from outside the door. Slowly, he rose his hand up out of its pocket and knocked.

"Come…i-i-i-in…" A muffled voice sobbed from the other side. Sasuke opened the door and stared at the lump on the bed in front of him.

'_Holy shit…did I make her this sad???'_

"Sakura."

The said girl removed the blanket over her head and looked at him for awhile, before throwing it back over. He sighed.

"Go away…" She said. Sasuke walked over to her and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Sakura, I'm sorry, so stop sulking." He said.

"You don't mean what you said. Those were all empty words." Sakura replied. Sasuke was slightly taken aback.

"What do you mean by 'empty words'?" He asked.

"You said you're nothing without me. But after, you wouldn't talk to me and said you didn't give a fuck if I left or not." She explained. It was true. Sasuke felt a little guilty now.

"…you're right. Just this one time, I'll admit I was being a bastard." He answered. He saw her pop her head from the blankets. Sasuke could see the tears in her emerald eyes. She emerged from the sheets and suddenly hugged him.

Sasuke, who was on the edge of the bed, was now toppling with Sakura onto the floor. Thanks to his quick reflexes, he used his arms to bounce off from the floor and recoil back onto the bed. But sadly, this put him in an awkward position with Sakura.

She was hugging him, he was on top of her, and to make things worse…they were both on a bed.

"Sasuke-kun…?" Sakura whispered. Sasuke quickly stood up from the bed. He could see her cheeks were furiously red.

For the first time in his life, his hormones kicked in and…**it **hardened.

"Uh…I'll just be…leaving now…" Sasuke muttered, walking towards the door.

"Wait." Sakura said. He stopped walking to signal he was listening.

"Thank you…" She finished, causing him to smirk. He walked out of the room and back next door.

"Did you get it???"

"Yea, yea!! Do you think Sasuke will get mad if he sees this on myspace?"

Sasuke twitched in annoyance as he heard them whispering.

"See **what** on myspace?" He asked darkly. The group tensed and very slowly turned around. Naruto hid the video camera behind his back and chuckled nervously.

"H-hi…teme…" He greeted, shaking slightly.

"**Give the video camera to me…**_**now**_." Sasuke commanded, glaring and smirking madly at the same time. Even Neji was a bit scared.

"Uh…um…n-n-n-no…?" Naruto replied, cowering behind a chair. He removed the tape from its compartment and quickly threw it towards Neji. The Hyuuga caught it effortlessly and dashed out the door.

"Run, Neji RUN!!! Your life depends on it**!!!!!!!!!!! RUN!**" Naruto screamed.

------------------------------

**7:00…**

"Okay, is everyone ready?" Ten Ten asked. The group behind her nodded and they set off towards the beach. Sakura walked by Sasuke's side. She could hear him muttering things like, 'Damn it…I didn't get that tape back…' or 'Fucking video camera…'

"…Sasuke-kun…? Are you okay?" She asked, tilting her head to the side curiously.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm okay…" He replied.

_**Arriving at the beach…**_

"Ino, pass me the girls' beach towels." Ten Ten said, her hand outstretched. Ino rummaged through the bag and handed the brunette three pink, beach towels. The boys' already had their towels set on the sand.

"Um…Ino…you only gave me **three** towels. We need four." She said uneasily.

"I know…I forgot to bring a fourth one!!!" Ino replied.

"T-then someone n-n-needs to share with a-a-a boy…" Hinata pointed out.

"Not it!" Ten Ten, Ino and Hinata shouted instantly. Sakura sighed.

"You guys are so mean!" She said, her hands landing on her hips.

"Oh well! You're going to have to share with Sasuke!" Ino said, nudging her best friend towards the Uchiha's towel. The pink-haired girl glared at her best friend before storming off towards Sasuke.

"Part one of mission: get Sasuke and Sakura back together is a success." The blonde whispered to the girls, Naruto, Shikamaru and Neji.

"Troublesome…why do **we** have to help?" Shikamaru asked, referring to him, Naruto and the male Hyuuga.

"Because I'm your girlfriend and I said so!" She replied, poking his chest.

"So…what's part two???" Naruto asked, ignoring the bickering couple. Ten Ten thought for awhile and shrugged.

"No idea…" She answered.

"I-I um…think we should l-l-let them handle…the rest on t-t-their o-own…" Hinata suggested shyly. Ino grinned.

"Yeah, great idea Hinata! We did our part!" She complimented.

**With Sasuke and Sakura…**

"S-Sasuke-kun…um…Ino forgot one of the towels…so…um…" Sakura fidgeted under his unemotional stare.

"Sit down." Sasuke interrupted. She blinked as she registered what was going on through her mind.

"H-huh?"

"I said, sit down. Ino forgot your towel and you need somewhere to sit. So, we'll share." He stated. She blushed and carefully sat down beside him.

"Um…o-okay…thanks…" She said, embarrassed. Then, there was an awkward silence.

"Uh…so…" Sakura muttered, rubbing the back of her head.

"Are you feeling better?" Sasuke cut in. She blinked, then smiled.

"Yeah! I feel great now!! Thanks to you, Sasuke-kun!" She replied. He smirked at her.

"That's good. Before, you looked like you on the verge of committing suicide." The Uchiha teased. She lightly punched his arm as she giggled.

"But you know…I'm really glad you came back…" He said quietly, and a bit seriously.

"R-really…? But, are you sure you meant what you said?" Sakura questioned, staring at him. He nodded.

"An Uchiha always means what he says." Sasuke said, as if it were a quote.

"Um…do you have a brother or something…?" She asked.

'_An Uchiha always means what he says…'_

To her surprise, he nodded again.

"Yeah, I have an older brother. His name is Itachi and he's a real bastard." Sasuke replied, crossing his arms as he glared at the sand.

"O-oh…so you don't like your brother…?" She said uneasily.

"I **hate** him." Sasuke said simply.

**9:00…**

"_**Ladies and gentlemen, we will now be starting the fireworks. Sit back and enjoy the show!!!"**_

Sakura looked up at the dark sky. Then suddenly, there was a loud crashing noise and the sky was filled with combinations of colors. She watched in awe as the colors blended and sparks flew around. It made her feel happy.

'_But best of all…I get to watch them with Sasuke-kun at my side…'_

She looked at Sasuke, who was busy watching the dazzling lights. Beyond him, she could see Ino and Shikamaru making out.

'_Ew…'_

There was a huge crash and Sakura's attention immediately focused back on the fireworks. It was obviously the finale.

It was breathtaking.

Then, two massive explosions appeared before the crowd, causing them all to squint their eyes. The two last colors of the fireworks…were…**blue** and **pink**. The colors made an amazing shade of purple.

**Lavender…**

Sasuke and Sakura both took a quick glance into each others' eyes before shifting their heads to the opposite side.

------------------------------

Behind the bushes, were Naruto, Ten Ten, Neji and Hinata.

"Did you catch the whole thirty minutes…??" Ten Ten asked, referring to the firework show and Sasuke and Sakura's small…moment. Naruto grinned as he put the video camera down in his lap.

"Yup!" He replied, giving them a thumbs up.

**A/N: Wasn't that a sweet chapter? So…much drama. But Sasuke made Sakura feel better!**

**Yeah, you saw all that cheesy romance. **

**Okay, you know the drill, REVIEW!!!**

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	8. The Unexpected

**A/N: Everything's going smoothly and I'm really happy right now! So, here's the next chapter!!**

**Chapter 8**

**------------------------------**

**Day 6:**

Sakura woke up earlier than usual today. She glanced at the beds beside hers and saw that Hinata and Ten Ten were still fast asleep. The pink-haired teen hopped off the bed and walked groggily to the bathroom to refresh.

_Minutes later…_

Sakura sat bored, looking out the window. It didn't look too sunny today. It was probably because today is the anniversary of her parent's death. She rested her hands in her lap and sighed heavily.

'_Maybe I should just stay here in the hotel today…?'_

"S-Sak…? What are you doing up so early…?" Ten Ten asked, rubbing her eyes. Sakura smiled at her friend.

"I don't really know…" She replied. The brunette looked at the calendar on the wall and let out a small gasp.

"Is something wrong, Ten Ten?" She questioned curiously.

"Um…isn't today the…anniversary of your parent's…death?" Ten Ten said. Sakura glanced at the floor, causing Ten Ten to feel slightly guilty.

"B-but you shouldn't be gloomy today! I'm sure your parents would have liked you not to be sad!! You should be…optimistic! Think about the positives in life!" She said happily.

"Y-yes! You're right, Ten Ten!! I shouldn't be so sad on this day!" Sakura said with a loud, determined voice.

"Shh! You might wake up the-!"

_**Knock!!! Knock!!!**_

"Too late…" Ten Ten muttered, clenching her fist. Sakura giggled slightly and slowly opened the door. She was greeted with four very pissed off teens.

'_I guess the boys are light sleepers…'_

"Uh…um…sorry…did I wake you guys up…?" Sakura asked, suppressing her laughter at how messy and untidy their hair was, though Sasuke's was still the same. Shikamaru's hair was out of its ponytail and down at his shoulders. It looked rather…spiky. Neji's hair was…to her great surprise, tied up in…two buns! Naruto's hair was the worse though. It was spread off in different directions and tangled. His face was stained with crusted drool.

"Grr…" They all replied, glaring with sleepy eyes. Sakura laughed a bit.

"Sorry! Ten Ten was telling me not to be sad today, so I yelled out that I was going to be happy!" She explained to them. Naruto snapped out of his grumpiness and tilted his head in confusion.

"Sakura-chan, why would you be sad today?" He asked. At that moment, the boys forgot about their ideas of revenge. They could see Sakura's face sadden slightly.

"Oh, I remember now!!! Please don't cry, Sakura-chan!! It's okay if your parents are dead!!!" The blond said, 'attempting' to cheer her up. She cried and sank to the floor to sit down.

"Dobe, you shouldn't have said that." Sasuke snapped at him. He sighed and bent down to pat Sakura's shoulder. She only wailed, causing them all to wince.

"Don't listen to Naruto. He's a freaking idiot. Now, stop crying, damn it." Sasuke 'comforted' her. She leaned towards him and put her head on her head on his shoulder.

"O-okay…" She sniffled. Shikamaru snorted.

"How…**emotional**, Uchiha." He said, crossing his arms as Neji smirked. The Uchiha glared at them as he stood up and helped Sakura get back on her feet.

"Ne, Sakura-chan, Sakura-chan, we should all go to the ramen café near by! I'm positive it'll cheer you up!" Naruto said cheerfully. Sakura wiped off a tear from her cheek and smiled warmly.

"Y-yes, that would be nice, Naruto-kun." She replied. The blond blushed slightly and hugged her.

"She called me _Naruto-kun_!!! Yay, she called me _Naruto-kun_!!!" He cheered.

------------------------------

**Later that day…**

"Finally, Ino, you came on time!" Ten Ten said as she stood up from her chair. Ino grinned and nodded.

"Yeah, I stopped seeing that hot lifeguard as soon as I started dating Shika-chan!" She answered. The boys began whispering amongst themselves.

"_Shika-chan…? Oh, that's rich!"_

"_Shika-chan?! How 'emotional', Nara!"_

"_Shut up, Uchiha!"_

"_I guess it was destined to be this way…'Shika-chan'…"_

"Okay, c'mon, let's get to that ramen café! I'm so hungry!" Sakura yelled cheerfully, throwing a fist into the air. Ino rose an eyebrow.

"Forehead…you're not…sad…?" She asked. The pink-haired girl was reminded of her parent's death, because she slumped back into a chair and cried anime style tears.

"Idiot blonde, don't remind her." Sasuke sneered. Ino laughed nervously and tried comforting her best friend.

"It's okay if your parents are dead!!!" She said loudly. Sasuke smacked his own forehead, very, very hard.

------------------------------

"Ne, Sasuke-kun, how come your forehead is red?" Sakura asked before slurping up some ramen noodles. He muttered a curse under his breath.

"You don't need to know." He finally replied.

"See, Sakura-chan, doesn't ramen make you feel better?!" Naruto asked, spitting slightly on Sasuke. The Uchiha glared.

'_Today is going to be horrible…'_

"Oh, today is going to be great, Naruto!" Sakura yelled, smiling. Sasuke smirked at her childish actions.

'_But it can't be that bad…'_

"Oh, Haruno-san, I heard that there's a shrine close by. Maybe we should all go and pray for your parents." Neji suggested.

"Hm…sure! I'm positive okaa-san and tou-san would love to meet you guys!!! Ne, they'll be so happy!" She answered back.

"Yeah, I'm sure they'd want to meet Sasuke to see if he's good enough for her…" Ino teased.

"What are you talking about?" Sakura asked in a naïve tone.

"What are you talking about?!" Sasuke asked in a loud, angry voice.

"Anyways, I'm gonna go to the bathroom really quick! Wait here, 'kay?" The pink-haired teen said with a cute giggle. Ino sighed heavily.

"Poor forehead…she has a lot to deal with." She said when Sakura was out of view. The group nodded in agreement.

"Yes, s-she's very strong." Hinata whispered, pointing her fingers together.

"I expected her to be gloomy today, but, as usual, she's her same optimistic self." Ten Ten said. She looked towards Sasuke.

"Sasuke, what do **you** think of her?" The brunette asked. Sasuke cocked his head to the side.

"A best friend." He muttered in reply. Ino grinned.

"Are you **sure**…? She'd make a real nice wife, Sakura's an amazing cook!" She said, poking the Uchiha's forehead. He backed away.

"Why are you talking about this stuff?" Sasuke asked, annoyed.

"Oh, no reason. But you do like her, don't you?" The blonde questioned casually.

"It's none of your business-…"

"Hi guys! So, what were you talking about while I was gone?" Sakura asked, smiling warmly as usual.

"Oh, just the fact that Sasuke likes y-!" Ten Ten started, but was rudely cut off as Sasuke kicked her underneath the table. She yelped and held on to her ankle, glaring at the raven-haired teen. Sakura only tilted her head curiously to the side.

"So, when are we going off to that shrine?" Naruto asked.

"Oh, yes, but first, I want to go buy some kashiwa-mochi as an offering." The pink-haired girl said. _(A/N: Kashiwa-mochi: Rice cake wrapped in oak leaf.)_

"Was that their favorite food?" Neji asked. She nodded.

"Yup, and it still is!" She replied, before glancing sadly at the floor.

"Sasuke-san, m-maybe you should g-g-go accompany H-Hime-san to the s-s-store…" Hinata suggested, earning silent praises from the group, minus Sasuke. Well, he knew if he said no, Sakura would become very sad, and he didn't want that.

"Fine. C'mon…" He muttered, irritated by Hinata's unexpected suggestion and his friends' silent praises towards her. He grabbed Sakura's wrist and jerked her forward and they began their journey to the…supermarket!

"Hinata, you're a genius." Naruto, complimented, patting her shoulder. She blushed at his touch.

"T-thank you…N-N-Naruto-kun…"

------------------------------

"Hm…Sasuke-kun, I can't find the kashiwa-mochi…" Sakura said, as she walked passed rows and rows of food, snacks and drinks. Sasuke sighed as he ran his hand through his hair. He spotted an employee (a girl) and walked towards her.

"Where's the kashiwa-mochi?" Sasuke asked. The girl looked up and immediately started blushing a deep shade of red.

"E-e-e-e-excuse m-m-m-me…?" She stuttered shyly. He twitched in annoyance.

"Where is the kashiwa-mochi?" He repeated. The girl stood up.

"I-I'll direct y-y-you there…" She replied nervously. Sasuke and Sakura followed her and soon they were in front of the packages of the special rice cakes. The girl bowed before Sasuke.

"I-i-it was a pleasure h-h-helping you…" She said, smiling slightly. When Sasuke made no reply, Sakura grinned.

"Thanks for the help!" She said cheerfully. The girl only glared at her before walking off. Sakura tilted her head in confusion.

"Hm? I wonder why she looked so angry at me…" The pink-haired girl said with her usual, clueless voice. Sasuke smirked as he shook his head.

"You're dense." He said. Ignoring his comment, she observed the rice cakes.

"Hm…each package comes with four rice cakes…" She whispered to herself. She picked up three packs, as Sasuke rose an eyebrow.

"Why three?" He asked.

'_Strange girl…'_

"One for my parents to share, and two packages for the rest of us!" Sakura answered, smiling warmly. He smirked again.

------------------------------

"Sasuke-kun, it's fine, I'll pay for it!" Sakura said, fishing around her pocket for some money. Sasuke was looking through his wallet.

"No, I'm paying." He replied.

"Sasuke-kun! I'll pay for it!!!" She whined, frustrated since she couldn't find her twenty dollar bill.

'_I know it's here somewhere…'_

"I'm paying, now shut up." Sasuke snapped, calmly handing the cashier some money. Sakura pouted, defeated.

Sasuke took the bag full of kashiwa-mochi and they exited the store.

"Sasuke-kun, you didn't have to do that…" She said, crossing her arms. He shrugged.

"Well, it's not right for a girl to pay for everything when a man is right there." He replied.

"What, I'm a **girl** and you're a _man_?" She asked.

"You act like a little girl." Sasuke answered casually. She hit him playfully on the arm as she stuck her tongue out.

"No I don't!" She denied. In one second flat, he swooped her off her feet and held her bridal style.

"Stop treating me like a kid and put me down!!!" Sakura complained. Many people around them stared curiously.

"_A lover's quarrel…?"_

"_No, maybe he's going to rape her!"_

"Idiot, this isn't a piggy back ride. It's called **bridal style**." Sasuke said. She blushed lightly.

"W-well…still! Put me down!" She said, struggling.

"Make me." He replied.

"Oh, now you're the one acting like a kid!" She pointed out. And with that, the stoic, silent, non-socializing, Uchiha…_**laughed**_. (Yup, I even had to underline, bold face and italicize it!) She stopped complaining and silently stared at him.

'_H-he…laughed…'_

"Ahem."

The two looked ahead and saw the group looking at them, grinning.

Sasuke quickly, yet gently, put Sakura down.

"Um…it's not w-w-what it looks like…" She started uneasily, laughing nervously. She took the bag from Sasuke's hands.

"W-well…I got us all some k-kashiwa-mochi…" She said. They only stared silently, still appalled at Sasuke's laugh. (Yes, they heard it)

"Oh my fucking god, Sasuke laughed!!!" Naruto suddenly shouted, flailing his hands high up in the air. Sasuke smacked him coolly on the head.

"Dobe." He said.

"B-but you laughed! You actually **laughed**!!! When's the last time you laughed??? Since, like, NEVER!!! This is so cool!" He continued shouting freely, despite the large bump on his head.

"Yes, dobe, I laughed, now can we just move along and go to this shrine?" The Uchiha asked impatiently. Neji nodded, recovering quickly from his shock.

"Yeah, c'mon." He said, beginning to walk forward. The rest of the group followed. But Ten Ten still stood, glued to her spot. Neji sighed.

"Yo, Ten Ten…?" He waved a hand in her face. She quickly shook her head and grasped his hand.

"Eheheheh…sorry! Well, let's go!" She cheered happily, skipping about.

------------------------------

Soon, they were in front of the decorated and gold shrine. Many offerings were piled neatly. There were gems, jewelry, pictures, candles and wrapped food. Sakura slowly placed the kashiwa-mochi in front. She kneeled down, and the group followed.

"Okaa-san, Tou-san, I really wanted to make the food homemade, but I didn't have the ingredients." She started, with a small giggle. It was a bit obvious she was hiding her pain. The others watched her carefully. Sakura sighed heavily.

"Okaa-san, Tou-san, it's been a year since you've both passed away, and I've managed to keep a smile on my face. I would even scold myself whenever I felt despair. Anyways, Ino brought me along with her and introduced me to some new friends!"

"I felt so glad! There's loud and clueless Naruto, adorable shy Hinata, funny Ten Ten, Neji, Shikamaru and sweet Sasuke-kun." She said. The Uchiha fidgeted a bit.

"They're all really great friends, and they've been helping me through my pains and worries. So, if you can, I hope you watch over them as you have been watching over me." Sakura finished. She stood up.

"Hm? Ino-pig, are you crying…?" She asked. Ino wiped her eyes.

"N-no…I think it's just dust or something…" She replied with a small sniffle.

------------------------------

"Mm! That kashiwa-mochi was really yummy! Thanks Sakura-chan!!" Naruto said, popping the last of his snack into his mouth. They neared the lobby, when Sasuke suddenly stopped walking.

"Sasuke-kun? Is something wrong?" Sakura questioned, staring at him.

"It's…**them**." He simply replied, looking ahead. Ino and Ten Ten suppressed their giggles as Neji and Shikamaru smirked. Naruto grinned as Hinata smiled lightly.

There, in front of the hotel doors, stood two figures. One was a very beautiful woman with dark blue hair. The shade matched Sasuke's perfectly. Beside her, was a man who looked a few years older then Sasuke. The two looked alike. The man had lines under his eyes.

The woman looked ahead and smiled brightly.

"Ah! Sasu-chan, how have you been?!" She greeted, running up to hug him.

_And it began…_

_To be continued…_

**A/N: Can you guess the two characters I've just introduced? **

**Anyways, thanks for all the sweet, heart warming reviews I've received!!! **

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	9. Playground Fun

**A/N: Hey peoples!!! Did you miss me?! Well, here's the moment you've been waiting for. Will one of the unknown characters be Itachi, Mikoto or a girlfriend...? Read on:D**

**Chapter 9**

------------------------------

The dark haired woman was hugging Sasuke tightly. At first, Sakura thought this was one of Sasuke's older fan girls until she heard Ino smile and say, "Uchiha-sama!"

"U-Uchiha-sama?!" Sakura said. Ino nodded.

"Yup, Uchiha-sama, meet Haruno Sakura, Sakura, meet Uchiha Mikoto." The blonde said, making gestures with her hands. The pink-haired girl was still shocked. She jumped when Mikoto shook her hand.

"Hello, dear. My, you're a cute girl." She complimented. Sakura gulped. This woman was **beautiful**. She looked like a model or a star. Her face was free of wrinkles and blemishes, her skin looked as soft as a baby's and her figure was perfect. Sakura was starting to wonder how their dad looked like…

"T-thank you…" She said shyly. Mikoto took a better look at her.

"Hm…Ino, you're right, they **do** look cute together…" Sakura heard the woman mutter.

"Mother, what are you doing here?" Sasuke interrupted, slightly impatient. Sakura noticed he didn't say 'Okaa-san'.

'_Well, I know he's Japanese…maybe he's just a bit Western style…?'_

"Oh, details, details!" His mother replied, waving her hand about.

"No. Seriously. Why are you here?" The young Uchiha asked again. Sakura bit her lip.

'_He's so disrespectful to his okaa-san…and she's not complaining about it…'_

"Fine, I'll tell you. Yamanaka-chan invited us! Your father couldn't attend and I forced Ita-chan to come along with me." Mikoto explained.

'…_Ita-chan…?'_

"Nice to meet you, I'm Uchiha Itachi. Please ignore the nicknames my mother addresses me as." The other man said, shaking Sakura's hand. She blushed.

'_Wow…the Uchiha family is full of beautiful people! And he's very polite…'_

"Y-yes…nice to meet you too, Itachi-san…" She replied, bowing a little. Itachi shook his head.

"I don't like formalities. Just call me 'Itachi'." He said. Sakura nodded, still blushing. Sasuke sighed heavily.

'_I knew today was going to be horrible…'_

"So, where did you guys just go?" Mikoto asked, a big smile plastered onto her face.

"Oh, we went to the shrine." Ten Ten answered casually. Sasuke's mother rose an eyebrow.

"Hm? Why?" She asked, crossing her arms.

"Nothing, now, go back home." Sasuke interrupted, apparently annoyed by his mother's questions. His mom pouted, much to Sakura's surprise.

"Aw…Sasu-chan…are you really going to send your own mother back home…?" Mikoto said in a sappy tone. The young Uchiha twitched.

"**Yes**, leave us all alone." He ordered. Sakura shyly stepped up.

"Sasuke-kun, you shouldn't be so mean to your O-Okaa-san…she must have c-come a long way…" She said in a semi determined tone. Sasuke crossed his arms and stared at her for a few seconds, before muttering, "Hn, whatever…" His mother clapped full of joyful glee.

"So, Sakura, Ino-chan told me so much about you over the phone! She says you and Sasu-chan have a wonderful relationship together!!" Mikoto exclaimed happily. Sakura blushed and suddenly felt like running away or shrinking right on the spot.

"E-eh…? N-no, not a **love** relationship…u-u-um…just a…friendly relationship!" She said nervously. She swore she felt herself sweating.

"Hm? Is that so? She told me about the 'bed incident' and the 'forgetting the towel plan'…" Sasuke's mom said with thought.

"Plan?" Sasuke questioned, glaring at Ino and Naruto. They laughed nervously in reply.

"Sakura, we need to talk." Sasuke said sternly, taking her wrist and dragging her off into an empty ally.

"Y-yes…?" She asked, timidly. He sighed.

"Sakura, my mom is a bit…weird, so just don't mind her. Ignore her for all I care, just don't let her reel you into one of her devious plans…got that?" Sasuke stated. Sakura nodded quickly.

"Now, I also wanted to let you know-!"

"Well, well, we meet again…" A voice interrupted their peaceful conversation. Sasuke quickly narrowed his eyes and stood in front of Sakura. Zaku emerged from the shadows, with a smirk on his features.

"Hello, Sakura**-chan**." Zaku said, bowing. Apparently, he was in his 'gentlemen' mood. But they both knew something bad was bound to happen any second now. He glanced over at Sasuke, who was glaring daggers into him.

"Calm down, Sasuke. I'm not going to steal her away or try to do anything 'inappropriate'." Zaku said, his smirk growing wider.

"Just state your purpose." Sasuke commanded in a cold voice. Sakura clutched onto his shoulder and was biting her bottom lip. She looked like a shy, lost child.

"I merely want a word with you two." He started, smiling with a small bow. Sasuke rose an eyebrow as he crossed his arms.

"Not interested. Now, fuck off before I beat the shit out of you." He replied coolly. Sakura winced at his harsh choice of words.

"Aw, Sasuke, don't be like this. I only needed to talk to you two." Zaku said. Sakura looked down and saw Sasuke's knuckles were white.

"P-please…we don't want any trouble…" She interrupted.

"Don't worry, it'll be a nice, conversation…" Zaku said slowly, cupping her face into his hand. There was a loud, painful sound and soon, the teen was clutching his red, throbbing hand.

"Don't fucking touch her." Sasuke spoke in a scary, cold tone.

"Fucking shit…fine, I'll leave for now…" Zaku spat, walking out of the ally. Once he was out of sight, Sasuke jerked on Sakura's wrist.

"Don't ever interfere like that again." He said. He let go of her wrist and the two silently walked out of the ally. Sakura felt the pain in her wrist and when Sasuke saw how red he had made it, he felt a bit guilty.

"What took you two so long?" Mikoto asked sternly.

"Nothing, mother…" Sasuke answered.

"Sure you didn't do 'anything', foolish little brother." Itachi said, smirking. Sasuke glared at him.

"We didn't do any of **that**." He said. Itachi turned around.

"Then, what did you **do**?" He questioned. Sasuke rolled his fist into a ball, so that the knuckles were white again.

'_He playing mind games with me…'_

------------------------------

"So, you kids ate already?" Mikoto asked, with a huge smile on her beautiful face.

"Mother, we're not 'kids' anymore…" Sasuke muttered.

"Well, yes, we did have lunch. We all ate a bowl of ramen." Ten Ten replied, covering up for Sasuke's rude comment. Naruto nodded, grinning.

"Yeah, yeah, and then, Sakura and teme went to the store to buy kashiwa-mochi for her parents and then, and then, teme laughed!" He explained in a very hyper tone. Itachi flinched as Mikoto let out a dramatic gasp.

"Oh! Do tell!" She said in hurried voice. Ino smiled.

"Yup, Uchiha-sama, it's true. And the cause of Sasuke's sudden mood was…**Sakura**." She said. Sakura blushed lightly as Sasuke's mother stared at her.

"Oh, Sakura-chan, please tell me how his laugh sounds…I haven't heard him laugh since he was two!!" She shouted like a little child. Sakura's eyes widened.

"Since he was…t-t-two…?" Sakura repeated uneasily.

"Yeah, and it's because I-…" Itachi started.

"Nothing, it has **nothing **to do with _you_." Sasuke said, looking at Sakura in the eye. She averted her gaze to the floor quickly.

'_I know there's something more to Sasuke-kun's past…'_

"Anyways, Sakura dear, who do you live with? Your mom and dad, I assume?" Mikoto asked, waving her hand around, signaling to forget about Sasuke's behavior. The pink-haired girl bit her lip.

"Uh…you see…Uchiha-sama…Sakura's parents passed away a year ago…" Ten Ten answered, looking worriedly at her best friend. Mikoto widened her eyes a bit.

"Oh, sorry dear, I had no idea. But if I'm not mistaken, I heard you and Sasuke bought food for you parents…" She pointed out, confused.

"I gave it to them as an offering at the shrine." Sakura, replied. Mikoto nodded.

'_Such a burden put on a young girl's shoulders…'_

"But it's okay! I live next to Ino's apartment, and I'm very happy with my friends!" She said, smiling warmly. Mikoto just couldn't help feeling…guilty.

------------------------------

Sakura sighed. Once again, she and Sasuke had been left in the boys' hotel room. The pink-haired teen drummed her fingers on the arm of her chair.

Sasuke tapped his foot impatiently on the floor, he was also annoyed by Sakura's drumming fingers.

_Tep, tep, tep ,tep ,tep ,tep…_

"Sakura, stop that." He said with frustration. She stopped.

"Oops, sorry Sasuke-kun…I'm just so bored…" She replied, lazily putting her head on his shoulder.

"You're not the only one…" The Uchiha grumbled.

"Oh, Sasuke-kun, that reminds me…can you tell me about your past…? Your Okaa-san said you haven't laughed in a long time…" Sakura said, staring at him. He sat up, but didn't say a word.

"C'mon, Sasuke-kun, you can tell me. We're best friends, right?" She chirped. Sasuke nodded.

"But this might not be the right time to tell you." He said. She frowned.

"Sasuke-kun, you know I'll **always** be here for you. I really, **really** like you, and I want to know everything about you. You shouldn't always be so alone…" Sakura said, giving him a small, content smile. She slowly put her hands on top of his.

"If it's a secret, you don't have to tell me though!" She said, still smiling. He sighed.

"Well…it might not seem like that much but…when I became two, my father only saw Itachi. He ignored my presence and hardly ever spoke with me. While my brother would train with my father, I would be forced out to be buy rice or something. My other relatives would call Itachi a growing plant, but they'd call me the **weed** that gets in the way of the plant's growing." Sasuke explained.

"But…weeds can also grow, and more can grow from one weed. The plant may grow on its own, but the weed grows with others. Sometimes, though, you have to be careful that you don't get cut down…" Sakura said softly. It was silent.

"I'm sorry! Was that too…awkward?!" She asked frantically. Sasuke shook his head.

"No, no not at all. Sakura, you come up with the greatest metaphors…" He replied with a small smirk. She blushed.

"T-thank you…"

------------------------------

**Day 7:**

_**Afternoon…**_

After a good treat of ice-cream, the group decided to go to the playground near by. Actually, it was Naruto's idea…

"I wanna go on the slide, so, fuck off, kid!" Naruto shouted at a young boy who was sitting on the very top of the slide. The boy stuck his tongue out at him.

"Make me, you fag!" He replied. Naruto cracked his knuckles.

"That's it! You are going to die"—

"Don't you dare touch my grandson!!" An old woman screeched as she hit Naruto repeatedly with her bag.

"Ow! Ow! Ow!" Naruto yelled. The boy on the slide chuckled. The group sweat dropped anime style.

"U-uh…u-u-um…sorry about t-t-this…excuse h-h-him…" Hinata said nervously. The old lady smiled.

"Make sure to put this dog on a leash, deary!" She said, pleasantly.

"Talk about mood swings…" Naruto murmured, rubbing his bruised arm.

"Naruto can be so funny sometimes!" Sakura giggled. Sasuke snorted.

"And dumb…" He added. Sakura grabbed his hand.

"Ne, ne, Sasuke-kun, can we go on the teeter totter?!" She asked, grinning cheerfully. Sasuke backed up a few steps.

"**Hell no**." He replied. She pouted.

"Sasuke-kun…please…?" She asked. He shook his head.

"No." Sasuke repeated.

"I'm gonna tell your mom and"—

"C'mon." Sasuke stopped her midway and they walked to the teeter totter. Sakura plopped down on one end as Sasuke sat calmly on the other. Sakura was risen up into the air, since Sasuke was the heaviest of the two.

The Uchiha lifted his feet off the ground and Sakura put her weight into the seat, so Sasuke was high in the air now. The pink-haired girl giggled as Sasuke scowled.

"Mother, you really shouldn't invade his privacy…" Itachi said to Mikoto, who was snapping pictures of Sasuke's moment on the teeter totter.

"Ita-chan, I am not invading his privacy! I'm just taking pictures of this adorable moment between him and Sakura!!" She replied. The other Uchiha sighed.

"Like I said..." He muttered. He glanced back at the two on the teeter totter.

'_But this is quite amusing…'_

"Can we get off now?" Sasuke asked impatiently. Sakura pouted.

"Aw…poohy…fine, then…" She replied, hopping off from the small seat. She suddenly ran up to him and tapped his shoulder.

"Tag! You're it!" She chirped, before skipping off quickly. Sasuke followed her closely behind. He only had to jog to catch up with her. He pushed her forward, a bit too hard.

Sakura toppled ahead and tripped Sasuke in the process. The two fell forward.

"Tag…you're it…" The Uchiha whispered into her ear. She blushed and stood up.

"Hee hee! 'Kay, you got me!" She said, grinning. Sasuke got up and dusted off his pants. He sighed when he felt sand in his shoes.

"Sasuke! Sakura!! C'mon, we're all going on this huge spinny, wheel thing-a-ma-bob!!!" Naruto screeched. **(A/N: Yes, I have no idea what the huge spinny, wheel thing-a-ma-bob is actually called, I've seen it on the Say OK video featuring Zac Efron, though!)**

"Are you sure we're all going to fit?" Sakura asked, approaching the group.

"Uh…no…but we're all pretty skinny!!" Naruto replied, patting his flat, hard stomach. It still amazes everyone that he eats so much ramen, but has no excess fat. **(A/N: Kinda makes me envious…)**

Somehow, they all managed to fit. (Itachi and Mikoto are just watching them.) Naruto kicked his feet off the sand and suddenly, they were all spinning.

"Yay! SPINNY!!!" Naruto cheered energetically. Sasuke smirked when he felt Sakura holding onto him from behind. He could also hear her faint laughing. The big wheel came to a stop and the group stepped out. Naruto got up and started walking around like a drunk man.

"That…was…awesome…" He whispered.

"Y-yeah…" Sakura muttered, shakily. Sasuke smirked at her.

"You were holding me from behind." He pointed out, causing her to blush.

"W-well, you can't really blame me!" She stammered. He took her wrist.

"C'mon, everyone's leaving us behind, let's go." Sasuke said, pulling her ahead. She didn't walk, so it was like he was dragging her. Sasuke sighed.

"What's wrong with you?" He asked in a very irritated tone. Sakura smiled brightly.

"One more time on the teeter totter!" She exclaimed happily. He glanced around.

'_No one's here…so I guess…'_

"Fine." He replied coolly, following her to teeter totter.

------------------------------

_**Later that day…(filler scene!)**_

"Sakura, here's that cook book you wanted me to buy for you." Itachi said, handing her a book.

Sakura took it from his hands gently and looked at the front. She tilted her head to the side.

"Uh…Itachi-kun…this isn't my cook book…it's titled…**Icha Icha**…" She told the older Uchiha uneasily. He snatched it from her.

"Oh, sorry, **here's** your cook book." Itachi said with a small blush on his cheeks.

**A/N: Yes, the 'later that day' was a small filler scene. Yeah, Itachi's a bit OOC, as you can see.**

**And for those who guessed that the two unknown figures were Itachi and Mikoto, well done, you guessed right! Sorry, Itachi has no girlfriend at the time, nor am I planning for him to have one yet. (Yes, my apologies Itachi'sAngel!)**

**Anyways, thanks for reading and please review!!!**

**Review Replies for Chapter 8:**

**mabui-hime, eyezue66613****, XxPinkCherryBlossoms4, yourdarkdesire, niwichan2468, Sakura-hime9, Mariegurl, Freedomstar999, konoha.chick91, daisherz365, 9081, oOfunkyrainbowOo, ninja7goth7vampire, anime-naruto-rox-16, krazykoreangurl, young-love, cherry blossom petals **(Sakura was only introducing her new friends to her parents. Her parents already know Ino)**, Dark Shining Light, The Lil Kag, Yuki's Little Girl:), ****xXx s2up3d Lov3r xXx****, L is 4 LOVE, Kunoichi-of-the-Leaf, Izari-Hime **(nice pen name!)**, mintxrain**

**Thanks to you all, even if you didn't review. **


	10. A Trip To The Beach

**A/N: I know, I know, it's almost been a whole freaking month since I've updated! But, I'm so busy with school, my so called 'job' (which is helping out at my mom's daycare), and…other stuffs. **

**Anyways, I'm glad you were all patient!!! **

**Here's the next chapter!!! (Boo hoo, this story is coming to an end soon! Maybe in two or three more chapters!!!) **

**Chapter 10**

------------------------------

_**Day 8…**_

_Afternoon…_

"Sasuke-kun, let's both go to the beach tomorrow! Just you and me!" Sakura suggested randomly as the two walked on the busy sidewalks of California. They just bought some bandages for Naruto since the old woman at the playground scratched his arm yesterday with her bag. It started bleeding today.

"Uh…sure, okay. But just don't tell my mom, got that?" Sasuke replied sternly. Sakura stared at him for awhile before giving him a small smile and nodding.

"Sasuke-kun, remember those fireworks we saw at the beach that one day?" She asked after a couple seconds of silence. Sasuke nodded.

"I remember the last two fireworks…they were pink and blue. Isn't that strange, Sasuke-kun?" She asked. He couldn't look her straight in the eye for some reason.

"…yeah." Sasuke answered, coolly stuffing his hands into his pocket.

"And…and...those two colors made a new shade…it's not purple or violet…it's not exactly orchid either…" Sakura said, trailing off to a small murmur.

"Lavender." He said.

"Huh?" She said, confused.

"Lavender. Pink and blue make lavender." He repeated. Sakura blinked.

"Lavender! I never would've thought of that color! Wow, Sasuke-kun, we're like, lavender buddies!!" She said loudly, grasping his hand. Sasuke smirked at her naïve, childish behavior.

'_Lavender…all of a sudden…that word sounds so…'_

He watched her silently at she giggled and skipped ahead of him towards the hotel entrance.

'_So…__**magical**__…'_

------------------------------

"Here you go, Naruto! I hope these bandages are okay!!" Sakura exclaimed cheerfully, handing him a roll of bandages. He grinned and gave her a thumbs up.

"Thanks Sakura-chan! Hinata-chan, can you help me get these on???" Naruto asked the girl next to her. She blushed a deep shade of red.

"U-uh…h-h-hai…" Hinata muttered, gently taking the bandages from his hands. She placed the roll on the wound of his arm and started turning the roll around his arm. Her hands were shaking.

She stopped rolling it and cut the bandages. Then, she tied the ends into a small, perfect knot.

"T-there you g-g-go, Naruto-kun…" Hinata said shyly, praising herself for not stuttering Nauto's name. He grinned once again.

"Thanks, Hinata-chan! It feels better already!" Naruto yelled, giving her a peace sign. She smiled a charming smile.

"Naruto-kun…"

Sakura watched quietly from the edge of a wall.

"Ahem, you know, spying isn't very nice, Sakura." A deep voice said, surprising her. She turned around and sighed in relief.

"Oh, Itachi-kun, you scared me. And, I guess I just couldn't stay away. They make a cute couple!" Sakura said brightly. Itachi nodded.

"I agree. Anyways, come; walk with me down the hall." He said. She blushed and nodded. They both walked slowly.

"You know, my mother tends to spy on you and my little brother a lot." Itachi said. She stared at him with wide eyes.

"E-eh?! Please tell me she didn't watch us too much!!" Sakura said, praying. He smirked.

"She took pictures." He replied, causing her to worry frantically. He smiled.

"Anyways, you should know that you are very important to Sasuke. You've made him open up more. I've never seen him so happy." Itachi told her truthfully.

"I…I never really noticed him as a…cold person. Before I met him, Ino-pig-chan told me he was a very cold and silent person. But when I started talking to him, I felt so warm! Sasuke-kun is really a very nice person. He just distances himself too much. I believe, someone in the world will really show his true self to the world and he'll be…happy. I'm hoping…that person will be…me…" Sakura said. He nodded in understanding.

"But…I wish that I could've helped him in the past…as he grew up, I ignored him, and a while later, I was an adult and left the house. I left Sasuke behind and wasn't there to help him with his problems…" Itachi said. Her eyes drifted off somewhere. She couldn't look at Itachi in the eye; he seemed a bit…sad.

"So…you regret not being there for him?" She asked. He sighed.

"It's not exactly regret. It's just…when you get older, you start to understand things you didn't get when you were younger. And you start to remember. Like when someone said this, you should've said that, or when someone said that, you should've said this. It's not regret, it's more like understanding." Itachi answered. Sakura bit her lower lip.

"Well, um…I really don't understand, but I tried my best. I think there's a **rift** between you and Sasuke-kun. To understand him more, you need to…**build a bridge** over that rift…you two need to bond." She said. Itachi chuckled lightly.

"My foolish little brother was right. You _do_ come up with the best metaphors…" He complimented. She blushed.

"H-he…tells you things about me…?" She asked timidly.

"Yea, like, he thinks you're too annoying, your metaphors are a pain to listen to, he hates the color of your hair and he hates your eyes too." He pointed out.

"What?!" She shouted angrily. Itachi smirked.

"But the reason why he hates your eyes is because he always gets lost in them. Because they're so…how do you say it…? Oh, yes, because they're so enchanting." He told her. Her deadly angry eyes shifted down to her hands.

"Even, if he does say rude things about me, I think Sasuke-kun is a **wonderful** person! He's very unique. I've never seen a guy like him, especially his chicken butt hair style. His eyes are also enchanting, I could get lost in them everyday. As for his attitude, I don't know, but he's my best friend. He sometimes understands things about me that even Ino doesn't…"

"So…to sum everything up, you like Sasuke, don't you?" Itachi asked. She blushed.

"It seems like it, I guess. No matter how many times I deny it…it will always be obvious!" She answered with a giggle.

"Well, I think you really are the person who will reveal his true self to the world. You probably already have." He replied.

"Itachi-kun, Sasuke told me that he really hates y"—

"Sakura, can you go fetch my wallet for me, sorry to interrupt, but it just came up. It's in the boys' hotel room." Itachi stopped her mid-way.

"Oh! Yes, I will get it right away!" She said in a determined voice, and off she went.

Itachi sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"You can come out now." He said. There was a curse heard and Sasuke walked out of the shadows.

"So, you heard everything she said, huh?" Itachi asked. His younger brother nodded.

"Yeah…" Sasuke muttered emotionlessly.

"You know, you should really return the feelings. She seems to like you, **a lot**." He told him.

"I can be nice in my own way. Anyways, that's why I disappeared for awhile. I dropped by a small cloth shop and got her something." Sasuke replied. He showed him something inside a bag. Itachi rose an eyebrow.

"What? That's all you're getting her? I small, stupid ri"—

"Don't call it stupid, you bastard. It means more to both of us than it looks like." Sasuke growled.

"Hm…I see. Do you two have some sort of…code or something?" He asked. Sasuke sighed.

"No, it's a long story, now shut up. She'll be back soon." He snapped. He tied up the plastic bag holding his gift for Sakura and slipped it into his jean pocket.

"And why did you tell her all those lies? I didn't say that about her." Sasuke added. Itachi smiled.

"Well, I just thought it would help you two with your relationship." He said. Sasuke looked forward.

"She's coming right now, I better hide…" He said.

Sakura appeared ahead.

"Here, Itachi-kun." Sakura said, handing him his brown and gold wallet. He gave her a word of thanks. Itachi looked to the side and saw his younger brother was gone.

------------------------------

"You're going to the beach without **me**?!" Ino shrieked, flailing her arms around. Sakura backed up a few steps and nodded meekly.

"Y-yes…you're not mad…are y-you…?" She asked nervously. Ino glared at her, before grinning.

"Naw! Of course not!! Just be careful, 'kay?" The blonde reminded. Sakura smiled.

"Don't worry, I'll be with Sasuke-kun." She said. Ino tilted her head to the side.

"Hm? That's interesting. He actually agreed?" She questioned. Sakura nodded slowly.

"Wow! It's either you're really convincing or he...he…likes you." She suggested. The pink-haired teen blushed.

"I…u-uh…um…why would he? I mean…I'm a nerd, though he doesn't know that, but it seems a little obvious. I'm not very pretty, I hate horrible split ends, my chest is flat, my legs are chubby and my waist is huge…" She trailed off, looking down at the floor and biting her lip. Ino's eyes softened.

"Forehead…all that"—

"Isn't true." A voice finished. Ino and Sakura turned around quickly.

"N-Naruto!" Sakura gasped. He grinned as he scratched the back of his head.

"Sakura-chan, you're beautiful, you don't have split ends, you're hair is extremely silky, you're chest is not in the least flat, you're legs are sexy and your waist is the perfect size! And don't get the wrong idea, cause I like Hinata." Naruto said, giving her a thumbs up. Sakura looked at the floor again and smiled.

"N-Naruto…" She said, running to him and giving him a hug. The two toppled onto the floor and ended up laughing.

Sasuke stood from with his back to the wall, listening intently to the conversation. He clenched his hand, sighed in frustration and walked off with his white knuckled hands in his pockets.

'_Why do I feel so…pissed…?!'_

------------------------------

Sasuke and Sakura walked down the path slowly. Sakura hummed contently.

"Sakura." Sasuke muttered, causing the girl to get startled and trip over. The Uchiha took her wrist and pulled her up before she could hit the ground.

"T-thanks Sasuke-kun…wait! Why am I thanking you? You're the one who scared me!!!" She whined. He smirked and grasped her hand tightly.

"There, now you won't have any chances of falling." He said, making her blush a deep shade of red.

"H-how can I be so sure you're not lying?" Sakura asked, teasingly.

"Number one, an Uchiha never lies, and two, I would never let you fall." He told her. She could've stood there forever in thought, if Sasuke hadn't tugged on her hand.

"What? Did I make you speechless?" He asked, smirking. She shook her head furiously.

"Of course not! Naruto has better chances than you do!" Sakura said. He narrowed his eyes at this.

"Sasuke-kun, did I make you speechless? I was only kidding." She giggled. Sasuke sighed. He wasn't sure if it was from frustration or…relief.

They finally arrived at the beach. Sasuke spread out a towel and sat down, watching as Sakura played around with the sand. He peered 'curiously' at her legs, since she had shorts on. He watched her as she used a small shovel she brought with her and pile the sand up.

"Sasuke-kun! Look! It's a sand castle!" She exclaimed. Sasuke got off of his towel and looked. He smirked.

"I swear…it looks like a **sand mountain**." He pointed out. She tilted her head to the side, oblivious at the fact that he just insulted her.

"R-really?! Oh, then I better get working!! Sasuke-kun, wanna help me?" She asked, holding out her mini shovel. Sasuke cocked his head to the side.

"I don't want anyone to see me making a sand castle." He told her stubbornly. She pouted.

"Sasuke-kun! There aren't that many people around!! Puh-lease!" She begged. He shook his head.

"Hell no. I seriously don't want anyone walking around and seeing the **Uchiha Sasuke** making a stupid _sand castle_." Sasuke said.

"Well, the 'Uchiha Sasuke', you're not a pretty good 'boyfriend', are you?" A voice said. Sakura rolled her eyes as Sasuke sighed angrily.

'_Zaku…'_

"Sakura-chan, I'd be a way better boyfriend than, **him**." Zaku said, using his shoulder to point at Sasuke. Zaku had two other people with him. One was a man with bandages all over his face. He was wearing very baggy pants. The other was a woman with really long her. She was staring at Sakura with disgust.

"This was the girl you were cooing about, Zaku? She looks like an innocent whore." The girl commented. Sakura glared at her.

'_Innocent whore? Since when do those words go together?'_

"Bitch." The pink-haired teen muttered under her breath. Unfortunately, for her, the girl heard.

"Excuse me, whore, I'm not the one who's trying to glomp Uchiha Sasuke." She said. Zaku grinned.

"Calm down ladies. Anyways, Sakura-chan, this is Kin. The other guy is Dosu." He introduced.

'_Kin…that's a pretty name, too bad the girl's really a horrible bitch. She's probably just one of Sasuke-kun's unwanted fans.'_

"Anywho, Sakura-chan, I have some 'business' I need to do with you." Zaku said, sending shivers down Sakura's spine. Sasuke stepped in front of her.

"Back off." He said. Zaku rose an eyebrow.

"Sasuke, you have no right to talk. It's three against one. You're no match for us. You probably can't hit a girl." He said, referring to Kin. Sakura glared intensely at them.

"Yea? But I can!" Sakura said loudly, landing a strong punch on Kin's nose. The long haired teen yelped and held her now bleeding nose. Sasuke smirked.

"Now it's two against three. It still doesn't overcome your numbers, but I think we'll manage." He told, shrugging.

"And you probably can't hit Sakura, a girl, can you?" He added. The other teen growled and pulled up his sleeves with a dangerous glint in his dark eyes. Sakura bit her lower lip.

"Sasuke-kun, just forget him and let's go…" She whispered to the young Uchiha. Sakura wasn't sure if she could convince him enough. If someone makes fun of Sasuke, he'll get angry and have to level up to him, to show people not to mess around. Ino told her it was something about his 'pride'.

But to her surprise, he took her wrist.

"You win, Zaku. I hope I never have to see your sorry face ever again." Sasuke spat, walking off. Sakura turned around and saw Kin kick lightly at the 'sand castle' she was making.

"Sasuke-kun, are you okay?" The pink-haired girl asked, with her eyes shining with concern. He nodded.

"Yeah, I just didn't want to get too carried away there. Thanks for saving my ass." Sasuke said. She blushed and nodded to him.

"Now, we need to find a new place to build your 'sand castle'." Sasuke reminded her, causing her to giggle. They walked right by the edge of the sea. Suddenly, a huge wave built up and…crashed onto them.

People nearby gasped in surprise and looked to see if they were okay. The wave drifted back into the sea to reveal two very, salty looking teenagers. Sakura spit water out from her mouth as Sasuke picked some pieces of seaweed off of his sweater.

"Tch…ew…I feel weird…" Sakura muttered, rubbing her arms. She looked down at her now, salty hands. Sasuke could feel his socks getting soggy.

"Shit…Sakura, let's go back and change." He told her. She agreed and they went to the hotel as quickly as possible.

------------------------------

"Oh my! What happened to you two?!" Mikoto yelled, latching herself onto the teens. Sasuke shoved her off.

"We were walking on the edge of the shore when a huge wave hit us." He explained. She sighed.

"Ew…you two are salty…" Naruto said. Ino nodded.

"Yea, Sakura, your clothes look crusty…" The blonde pointed out. Mikoto clapped her hands together.

"Sasuke and Sakura, you should go take a nice, clean shower." She said. They did and reported back to the lobby.

"Yo, teme, your mom and Itachi went somewhere, they're coming back tonight. Anyways"—Naruto started, but Ino cut him off.

"Since tomorrow night is our last night together, we decided…we're going to have a nice party!" Ino exclaimed happily. Sasuke looked at them suspiciously.

"…This includes alcohol, doesn't it?" He asked. Naruto grinned.

"Yup, the usual, I spike the drinks without anyone expecting it, yea yea. But teme, you never get drunk. You can drink gallons of beer without falling asleep!" He shouted. Sakura widened her eyes.

"W-wow! Really…?!" She said in surprise. Naruto nodded.

"He's never gotten drunk, neither has Itachi. It's probably just some special Uchiha trait…" Ten Ten muttered. She turned to Neji.

"But this guy over here **does** get drunk, believe it or not!" The brunette said. Sakura giggled as Neji growled angrily.

'_My new friends…but when it comes for the time for us to separate…I don't know what I'll do. It'll be unbearable for us to be apart…'_

Sakura sighed.

'_That's why I should enjoy every single moment with them…good and bad, I don't care…'_

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Sakura, who started looking gloomy.

'_Just as long as we're all together for now…I don't care…'_

She smiled softly.

'_I don't care…'_

**Thank you to Izari-Hime **(I'm glad the review went through!)**, konoha.chick91, niwichan2468, 9081, Friesenator, L is 4 LOVE, Freedomstar999, mabui-hime **(Ooo, yes, very nice penname!!!)**, XxPinkCherryBlossoms4, cherry blossom petals:), rayray-rchl-chan, Dark Shining Light, The Lil Kag,****xXx s2up3d Lov3r xXx****, Yuki's Little Angel, Itachi'sAngel **(Yes, I'll remember you.)**, Crazy Neko Girl, and slavetothekeyboard!!! **

**But what disappoints me was, I was always hitting 31 reviews, but this time suddenly, it went down to 19!! So, please, please, please review. It'll make me so much happier, and probably make me update quicker. **


	11. Party Time

**A/N: **

**Chapter 11 (Uh…I think…)**

------------------------------

**Day 9…**

Naruto heaved out a long sigh as he adjusted his fishing hat. He kept a light hold onto the fishing rod he was holding. The girl behind him was patiently sitting down and staring up at the sky with her light, lavender eyes. The boat across from them held a brunette and a male Hyuuga, while another held a blonde and a lazy ass teen.

Finally, the last boat to the left. Sakura moved her fishing rod from left to right impatiently. Sasuke sighed.

"You know, you're going to scare all the fish away if you keep moving the damn rod…" He pointed out, rudely. She sent him a small glare.

"Well, sorry, Mr. I-know-everything-and-you-don't…" She replied. Sasuke smirked.

"Patience is a virtue, Sakura…" He told her.

"But I'm not the patient type. Fishing is not my thing. I mean"—

"KYA!!!" Her rod was suddenly jerked forward. Sakura held on tightly to the fishing rod and slowly extended her tongue out in concentration. Sasuke rushed over to help her and placed his hands firmly onto her hips.

Sakura tugged on the fishing rod with all her might. Sasuke quickly let go of her and instead grabbed the fishing rod and together, the two pulled.

Finally, after much work, the fish was brought out of the water and…

The fish was the size of a goldfish. Yes a goldfish, the ones that people have in their houses swimming around in a bowl. Sasuke scowled as Sakura giggled.

------------------------------

"Hee, hee, Sasuke-kun, that was fun!!! And that tiny fish was sooo cute!!!" Sakura cooed, swinging around an empty bucket. They released their caught fish, since it was too small a meal. Sasuke sighed. He was sure that fish was going to be a big one. Oh well…

Then, he began remembering the gift he got her and showed Itachi.

'_I wonder when I should give it to her…'_

**Crunch!**

"Fuck…"

"KYA!"

Sakura and Sasuke had stumbled upon a…deep, dug up hole?!

Sasuke cursed again and sighed. That was when he realized Sakura was laying on top of him. He was surprised by how light she was.

"S-Sakura, are you okay?" He asked, not moving.

"…y-yeah…ouch…it hurts…" She muttered back. Sasuke could see blood…and it wasn't coming from his body.

"Sakura, you're bleeding." He informed, looking through his sack to see if it had any bandages or anything useful to prevent Sakura's wound from getting an infection. There was nothing.

"Okay, on three, we need to both stand up, okay?"

"One…two…three…!"

They both went forward and clashed head to head.

'_Man…why do these things always happen to us…?'_

"Mou…that hurt…a lot…" Sakura murmured as she rubbed her throbbing head. She was well aware of the fact that her arm was heavily bleeding. The blood was dripping slowly onto the floor. She winced.

Sasuke took notice of this and effortlessly ripped off a piece of his blue, silk shirt and walked towards her, which wasn't that far since the hole was very thin and wasn't very easy to breathe in.

He tied the silk strip around her wound carefully.

"Sasuke-kun…what're you…"

He tied the ends up into a clean, perfect knot. She stared at it for awhile, before smiling. Then, she realized it was taken off of his probably **expensive **blue, silk shirt and that because of her, it was completely **ruined**. She panicked.

"S-Sasuke-kun! Uh…when we get back to the hotel I'll pay you money to get that shirt fixed! I bet it cost a lot and maybe it was a gift from your Kaa-san! Ah, I'm so very sorry!!" She apologized over and over again. Sasuke sighed.

"It's **okay**. This shirt probably cost 0.01 percent of my money, or less than that. And no, it wasn't from my mother. I buy my own clothes. If she bought my clothes, she would make me cross dress because she's always wanted a girl." He replied, smirking. She giggled lightly. He was glad she was relaxing now. Then, they sighed in unison.

"Sasuke-kun, do you have your cell phone with you?" The pink-haired teen asked. He shook his head. **(Sakura doesn't own a cell. How sad!)**

"Shoot…this is bad…" She said in a quiet voice. Sasuke rose an eyebrow.

"You don't have your own phone?" He questioned. She timidly smiled.

"No…I can hardly pay for my own phone bill back home." She replied. Sasuke always hated it when she smiled like that. He knew she was mourning inside.

"Where do you work?" He asked. She glanced down at her feet and muttered something he couldn't hear.

"Huh?"

"At a bar…" She said in a more clear voice. He widened his onyx eyes.

"What? You didn't tell Ino, did you?" He asked her. He was starting to feel a bit angry right now. She wouldn't look him in the eye and kept her head low.

"N-no…" She answered. He felt frustrated.

"How long have you been working there?"

"…a year…"

Sasuke slammed a fist on the side of the hold, causing some of the loose dirt to crumble down onto the floor. Sakura cocked her head to the side and started feeling guilty.

"Damn it, Sakura! Don't you know how dangerous that it?! You didn't even tell Ino, so if something bad were to happen…no one would know! That's what I hate about you! You're always hiding something. There will never be anyone who will know everything about you." He spat. She wanted to cry, but her eyes felt dry.

"I-I want to be a nurse…" Sakura said in a hushed tone.

"But…I don't think I can make it into college…I don't have enough money. I use my pay checks to pay for my bills, food and clothing. And I always have only one penny left to use. I always put it into my bank account…"

He narrowed his eyes.

"Sasuke-kun…I'm sorry if I've been causing you trouble. I'm sorry for not telling you anything. I'm sorry for hiding everything from you…" She ended.

"Hmph…if you had a penny for every time you said 'I'm sorry', you would be very rich." Sasuke joked, causing her to smile. She stepped up towards him and hugged him tightly.

"Sasuke-kun…I'll make sure that **you** will be the person who will know _everything_ about me." She told him.

"Sasuke-kun…I love"—

"Oy! Teme, Sakura-chan!!! Why the hell are you two down there?!" Naruto screeched. Sakura quickly backed away from Sasuke with an immense blush on her cheeks. She tucked some of her pink hair behind her ear shyly.

"Dobe, just get us out of here!" Sasuke yelled back. Naruto nodded and began rummaging through his bag. He took out a rope and started calling for Neji and Shikamaru. They came in rushing. They slowly sent the thick rope down. Sasuke let Sakura climb it first, then he went on. He looked away from the front, because her ass was right there and he didn't want to seem like a pervert. But the other guys noticed and grinned at him once he was on the flat, upper level ground.

"Thank you, Naruto, Shikamaru and Neji-san! I thought we would be stuck there forever!" Sakura exclaimed happily, giving them a group squeeze.

"Teme, aren't you going to thank us too?" Naruto asked. He only scoffed in reply. The group went back to get the others and began walking home, leaving the empty bucket in the deep, skinny hole.

------------------------------

Once they got to the hotel, Sakura and Sasuke took relaxing showers since they were dirty from falling. After that, Sasuke decided to clean up Sakura's wound properly. He needed to spray it with anti-infection and wrap it in a real bandage.

"A-ah…Sasuke-kun…t-that…hurts…" Sakura muttered. Behind the door, Naruto and Hinata were listening to the conversation, and they were getting the wrong idea. Naruto couldn't shake off the mental images in his head.

"Just hold still…"

There was silence, but you could hear the faint noises of Sakura's whimpers.

"A-ahh…!"

Naruto and Hinata jumped at least ten feet in the air.

"I-it's starting to feel better…a-ah…but it still h-hurts…"

"That's good."

Naruto couldn't take this anymore. He slammed the door open.

"Stop having se"—!

He saw them sitting on the floor…with their clothes **on**. They gave him weird looks.

"Stop having, **what**, Naruto?" Sakura asked cluelessly, with an innocent look in her eyes. Sasuke only rose an eyebrow at him curiously. Hinata looked at Naruto worriedly.

"I…uh…I said stop having…cereal! I thought you were eating cereal without me! But it was my bad!" He said in a lame cover up. Hinata bowed down in apology shyly, before grasping Naruto's arm and walking out of the room.

"N-Naruto-kun, that w-w-wasn't a very g-g-good cover up…" She told him. He sighed.

"It was the best I could come up with…" He replied.

Sakura tilted her head to the side.

"It didn't sound like he was going to say cereal…" She murmured. Sasuke nodded in a silent agreement. Then, he began wrapping the white, bandage around the pink-haired girl's arm, very carefully. Sakura smiled.

"Ne, Sasuke-kun, you're so nice!" She told him. He merely nodded.

"Uh…you wanna eat cereal?!" Sakura shouted out randomly. Sasuke rose an eyebrow and stared at her oddly. She grinned back at him.

"Uh…why…?" He asked uneasily. Sakura pouted.

"What? You don't want to eat cereal with me…?" The pink-haired girl pouted. Sasuke cringed, but sighed.

"Fine…fine…let's go downstairs and eat cereal or whatever…" He replied unhappily. Sakura squealed like a little girl in delight and gave him a huge hug. She muttered an 'ow' when she hurt her arm, which caused the Uchiha to smirk.

The two took in elevator downstairs.

Sakura got some Rice Crispies, while Sasuke got Apple Jacks.

"Sasuke-kun! Let's play a game!" Sakura suggested, before stuffing a spoon full of cereal into her mouth. Sasuke rose an eyebrow, yet again.

"Uh…why are you being so random today?" He asked. The pink-haired girl smiled.

"Sh! Well, it's just because we only have today and tomorrow afternoon together. I thought we should spend more time with each other. So…about that game. I'll ask a question about you, then you ask a question about me! Because we don't know too much personal info about each other!" She explained. Sasuke munched slowly on his cereal.

"So…Sasuke-kun, what's your favorite color?" She asked.

"Hm…blue. I like black too…but blue's better." He answered.

**Bold: Sasuke**

_Italicize: Sakura_

**What's your favorite anime?**

_Fruits Basket!_

_Do you like cheese?_

**Random question, but…no, I don't really like cheese.**

**Who was your first real kiss?**

_Uh…no one…_

_Hm…what's your favorite sport?_

**Basketball.**

**Do you have a Myspace?**

_Of course! Hey, that's one way for us to communicate while we're apart!_

_Do you read porn?!_

**Hell no. But I know for a fact that Itachi does.**

**Can we stop asking questions now? My cereal's getting cold.**

_Hmph…FINE. And how the heck can cereal get any colder?!_

"I think I know more about you!" Sakura exclaimed. Sasuke sweat-dropped, anime style.

"Yeah…like only three or two more things." He replied dully. Sakura sighed.

"Sasuke-kun, knowing more about someone, even just the smallest detail, makes progress in a relationship." She told him sternly. He smirked.

"What 'relationship' do I have with **you**?" He asked. The pink-haired girl turned around to blush.

"I meant it in a friend way! Baka!" She yelled, before stuffing more cereal into her mouth.

------------------------------

"Forehead! No! Come here! Young lady, come here, damn it!" A very frustrated Ino shouted. Sakura cowered behind the bed.

"No…I look like a slut…" She mumbled, shoving strands of hair behind her ear. Ino let out a dramatic sigh and took a nearby brush from the dresser and some pins.

"Sakura, I'll make you look like a normal civilian if you come over here." She told her.

"No…"

"Forehead…"

"No…"

"Alright then…**Sasuke!!! I just wanted to let you know that Haruno Sakura loves**"—

"Okay! I'm here! Stop screaming!"

Ino smiled in triumph. She brushed Sakura's silky, pink locks carefully and made sure that her hair was completely straight and that every strand was in its place. Then, she stuck some bobby pins into her mouth to hold them and began the process of styling Sakura's hair.

The result came out pretty well. Sakura's hair looked a bit like Anko's, but it portrayed more of a…quaint and simple feeling. Sakura actually liked this style.

"Ino…thanks a lot." She muttered in amazement. The blonde grinned.

"Hey, Hinata, did you finish Ten Ten's hair?" She yelled across the room.

Hinata looked up from her work and nodded.

"Y-yes…and I think i-i-it looks pretty…n-nice…" She replied, with a smile on her pretty face. Ten Ten grumbled. Her brunette hair was down and in perfect curls.

"Oh my god, Ten Ten, you look **beautiful**!!!" Sakura and Ino shouted in unison.

"Hinata, what about **your** hair?" Ten Ten questioned. Hinata blushed.

"Well…um…there aren't many ways to style it so…u-uh…" She grabbed a sparkling pin and carefully stuck it into her lavender hair.

"There…" She whispered.

As for Ino, she decided to put her hair down and wear a bright, pink headband.

------------------------------

"Oy! Teme, pass the gel!" Naruto shouted from across the room. Sasuke tossed a bottle after squeezing some gel into his hands and styling his hair spikier than usual.

Neji was currently in the bathroom, carefully combing his hair and using pounds of good scented gel…and Axe. Loser.

Shikamaru was in some casual attire with his normal hair style. He decided from the start that it would be too troublesome to make his hair and clothes look all flashy.

Naruto observed himself in the mirror. He poked his hair a bit before grinning and giving himself a thumbs up.

"Alright!"

------------------------------

"Okay…the directions say to go…left…"

"Naruto you idiot, that means left! Can't you tell your right from your left?!"

"Oh! Sorry, sorry, Sakura-chan…"

"Dobe, just give me the damn thing…"

"Sasuke-kun, it's not good to curse."

"Hn…"

**Honk! Honk!**

The group of teens looked to the sound of the horn. Everyone except Sakura widened their eyes. There, in the car, were Kiba, Chouji, Shino and Sai. The two in the front were Itachi and Mikoto.

"You guys went to a different country yesterday?!" Naruto screeched.

"H-h-h-how…?!" He continued. Itachi just smirked.

"It is a secret, Naruto-san." He replied, his tone going off to a mysterious linger.

"Anyways, we'll meet you all there, bye bye." And with that, the older Uchiha drove off, nearly splashing them with dirty water.

…

"Hey! Get back here!!!" Naruto screamed, running.

"Dobe! There's no way you can catch up with the car"—

But he was already gone from view.

"N-Naruto had so much…s-s-stamina…" Sakura said with awe as they all began walking fast. Hinata nodded.

"In school, he has the most stamina of all kids…." She whispered with a blush. Sasuke merely scoffed at everyone's praises for Naruto.

"Sasuke's just mad because he has the second highest stamina rate. The teachers say he's no where **near** Naruto's level…" Shikamaru pointed. Sakura just smiled and began clutching onto Sasuke's arm.

"Hey…don't get all hot-headed, 'kay?" She muttered in a sweet tone so the others wouldn't hear. He exhaled.

"Whatever." He replied, removing her off of his arm.

They finally arrived at their reserved building. (Actually, the Uchihas just so happened to own it!)

When they entered, they heard loud music. There were tables lined with finger sandwiches, cookies, cheesecakes and other delicious food.

"All courtesy of Akimichi Chouji." Kiba said. Naruto was there as well, panting and drinking water.

The males exchanged high fives and 'guy' hugs.

"Sakura, this is Kiba, Shino, Chouji and Sai." Ino introduced them with a grin on her face. Sakura immediately bowed down, inferring that they were rich people…which they are.

"No need for formalities, Sakura!" Kiba said with a big smile as he patted her shoulder. She blushed and nodded.

"Well…it's nice to meet you!" She said. Shino gave a slight nod of the head, Chouji gave her an (unexpected) hug and Sai gave her a warm smile. (if not fake!)

After meeting them, she made a beeline to the cheesecakes. Sasuke rose an eyebrow and decided to follow her.

"Hm? You have a liking to cheesecakes, I see." He said with a smirk when he saw her pile three large slices of cheesecake on a single plate. The pink-haired girl grinned and nodded.

"Yup! Cheesecake is my love! And Chouji made a really good assortment of them! There's chocolate chip, caramel, apple, cinnmon…wow…they all look so good…" She trailed off.

"Then why'd you get three plain cheesecakes?" Sasuke questioned.

"Oh, I don't want to spoil myself…you all deserve the good cheesecake!" She replied happily, after stuffing some food into her mouth.

"Sakura, you know that you're one of my best friends now, right? You're everyone's friend here. Just enjoy yourself and live life to its fullest." He stated.

"Yes…I suppose you're right…but…"

"Ha ha, live life to its fullest, Sakura you know you're my best friend!" A voice mocked from behind. They turned around and saw Naruto, laughing at Sasuke.

"That's real cute, teme. The things you say to Sakura-chan…aw…do you have a crush on her…?" The blond asked, making kissy faces. Sasuke smacked him hard on the head. They looked at Sakura, but saw she had snuck off to the punch bowl.

She drank two small cups of punch and returned, quenched. Naruto stayed silent.

"U-uh…."

Sasuke got the message and turned to glare at him.

"Y-you…." He started.

"**NARUTO!!!! You spiked the punch, didn't you?!**" Ino screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Look at what you've down to Hinata!" Ten Ten shouted, pointing at the said girl who was singing the ABCs while skipping and throwing around confetti.

"Ah! Hinata! I'm sorry, Hinata-chan!!! Aw man! Neji's gonna kill me!" He shouted.

"Hey! Shut the hell up! I'm so tired of this shit!" A voice yelled. The group looked towards the small voice and were surprised to see Sakura, leaning coolly against the wall with lazy eyes and a strange look on her face.

"S-Sakura-chan…?"

**A/N: I just HAD to make Sakura and Hinata drunk! It just seemed so natural!!! **

**Thank you to****xXx s2up3d Lov3r xXx****, Freedomstar999 **(oh yes! I love Furuba! I use some scenes from it. It's just so addicting)**, Aoi Hana9, Maki-Zushi, Friesenator, yourdarkdesire, 9081, Kunoichi-of-the-Leaf, krazykoreangurl: ) **(hand over the cookie!!!)**, sasukeanime79, rayray-rachl-chan, cherry blossom petals, **(YES, I AM going to make a sequel. I already have the rough draft for it done.)**, xxItachi's Angelxx **(Yea, I know it seems like Furuba, but I'm only using some of my favorite scenes between Sasuke and Sakura. It's not 100 percent based on it)**, Yuki's Little Girl, The Lil Kag, XxPinkCherryBlossoms4, Kasumi-Hodoraki, and hermosoxmusicalxkT. **

**I LOVE YOU ALL!!! Your reviews warm my heart very much! **

**I AM going to make a sequel to this story when it's done, I have the rough draft saved onto my computer. I'm still making a plan on the ending though XD LAME. **

**Okay, the next chapter is going to be the last! Be prepared for that!!**


	12. Miracle

**A/N: **

**Chapter 12**

------------------------------

"Sakura…uh…calm down…" Sasuke said, walking towards her. She backed up.

"Teme…the alcohol's gunna wear off soon. I didn't spike it too much." Naruto muttered. He pointed at Hinata, who was already sleeping in a nearby chair.

"See? I'm sure Sakura-chan won't do anything stu"—

The said pink-haired girl ran out of the room and out into the streets. Sasuke sighed and ran after her.

"pid…" Naruto finished, scratching the back of his head.

"Sakura!" Sasuke shouted. She turned back and stared at him. A car was whizzing into her direction. The young Uchiha widened his eyes. Sakura, unaware of the car that was about to crash right into her, merely kept staring at him.

"Sakura! Move!" He yelled. There was no way he could get to her in time. She whipped around and saw the car, speeding wildly as if it were actually aiming at her. Stubbornly, she just thrust her hands over herself and shut her eyes.

"Baka! That's not going to protect you! Sakura!!!" Sasuke shouted angrily.

"Ahhh!!!"

"Sakura!!!"

Suddenly, a tall figure bounced into the scene and tackled her to the ground. The car flew past them. Sasuke let out a deep, relieved sigh while clutching his shirt. He jogged to Sakura and the mysterious figure. Sakura stood up and dusted the particles of dirt and blades of grass off of her body. She turned to look at the man who began standing up and widened her eyes.

"Z-Zaku-san?!" The pink-haired girl gasped in surprise. He grinned at her as he wiped the blood from his cheek.

"Oh no! You're bleeding!" She said loudly, inching closer to him and gingerly placing her fingers on his small wound.

"Eh? Sakura, it's okay. I'm not going to die from the wound." He told her in a joking tone. She shook her head.

"No, I'm really sorry, Zaku-san. You got hurt because…because of me…" She muttered. He put his arm forward. When he was about to grab her into a tight hug, Sasuke stepped up.

"**Ahem**." Sasuke glared at Zaku. He didn't glare back.

"Oh, it's Uchiha." He said.

"Yes, it's me, '**Sasuke**'." He corrected. Zaku grinned again.

"Oh, yeah, I'll address you by your first name I guess, since you've been addressing me by mine, and all." He replied. Sakura glanced back and forth at the two. She could feel the tension and a dark aura coming from Sasuke's direction.

"Um…Sasuke-kun, you should thank Zaku-san…he saved me…" She told him. Sasuke scoffed.

"I bet he's just trying to kiss up to you." He answered back, rudely.

"Actually, no, I'm not. I started going out with Kin, you remember her, right?" Zaku asked. Sakura's eyes narrowed.

"Yes, I remember." She replied.

'_Oh, of course I remember that horrible __**bitch**__…'_

'_Ah…I shouldn't be thinking such things…'_

"That's really wonderful! How is she?" She asked, forcing out a smile. Sasuke noticed this and smirked at her.

"Oh, I'm perfectly fine." A new voice entered the conversation. Zaku turned around as his eyes lit up.

"Oh, Kin! Hi!" He greeted, waving dumbly. Kin smiled kindly at him, blushed at Sasuke and glared at Sakura. What a change of expressions…

"Zaku-kun, why were you hugging that man stealing **whore**?" She asked, pointing directly at the pink-haired teen.

"Kin-chan, she's not a whore, she's one of my friends. Same thing goes to the Uchi…ahem, I mean Sasuke." He replied.

"Friends? These two are your friends? Why should I date someone who is friends with a whore?" She asked. It seemed like she had no problem with Sasuke.

"Kin-san, I know we went off with a shaky start…but, Zaku is a great guy." Sakura said boldly.

"And…and, he deserves to be treated better. Either he should dump you, or you should sharpen up. You're very lucky to have Zaku-san. He's funny, sweet and very handsome. And you're a great person too!" She finished. Kin's eyes softened, Zaku smiled and Sasuke scoffed lightly. Kin grabbed Zaku's arm.

"You're…you're a great person too, Haruno." She muttered. And with that said, she held Zaku close to her and the two began walking away. But Zaku quickly ran back to Sakura and handed her a slip of paper. He turned back around and wrapped his arm around Kin.

Sakura opened the paper and smiled.

They had given her their phone numbers and e-mail addresses. "Sasuke-kun, we just made two new friends! That just makes me so happy!" She said, grinning brightly at him. He merely nodded at her.

"Um…wanna go to the park?" He asked.

"It's dark…but sure! Why not? Besides, as long as I'm with you, I don't have anything to be afraid of." She replied.

"Hey…would you say those things you said about Zaku about me too?" Sasuke asked randomly after a few moments of silence.

"Nah, I'd say more things than just that!" She answered back, grasping his hand and giving it a tight squeeze. He stared at her in disbelief.

"What?" She asked, tilting her head to the side. Then, before he could answer, something flew swiftly into Sakura's pink locks.

Sasuke coolly put his arm up and took that something out. She gasped.

"A-a cherry blossom petal?"

She looked up and gasped even louder. Three cherry blossoms in full bloom stood, towering over them. More pink petals flew down and covered them. They soon realized the floor below them was piled with cherry blossom petals.

"These trees grow in California?" Sasuke asked himself, touching the trunk of one of the trees. He shook his head.

"This…this can't be. Cherry blossoms don't grow in this area…" He trailed off. He looked off into the distance. No one but them was in the park.

"Then maybe…maybe it's a miracle…" Sakura muttered, attracting Sasuke's attention.

"Miracles? Miracles don't happen." He replied.

"Yes they do. You're standing in a miracle and yet you don't believe in them?" She asked. The Uchiha just sighed and sat down in the petals. Sakura followed suit.

"This…is really nice. It never really occurred to me that cherry blossoms could be so beautiful at night…" The pink-haired girl spoke with a smile on her face.

"Cherry blossoms are always beautiful." Sasuke pointed out. She blushed, remembering her name meant 'cherry blossom'. He realized that too, and looked away, a bit embarrassed.

"Sasuke…though all the chaos of tonight and all that…I'm glad it turned out to be like this…" Sakura said, leaning her head on him.

'What's better than spending time sitting under a cherry blossom tree at night with the one you love?'

She inhaled the cool air.

'The one I love…'

They spent an hour and a half, sitting in silence, back to back, under the tree, savoring each minute.

"It's kind of late now. We should head back. They must be worrying about us." Sasuke finally stated. Sakura nodded. Once they stepped out from the circle of the fallen petals, there was an explosion behind them. They both turned around quickly in alarm.

The cherry blossom trees had…er…exploded…in a show of pink petals. They soon fell to the ground. After minutes of staring at the ground, the petals soon dissolved in sparkles. They could now see crowds of people walking around, as if they've been here for at least three hours.

"That…that was…?" Sasuke couldn't urge himself to say the rest.

"A miracle…" Sakura finished for him, smiling.

"Ah…let's just go now." Sasuke said, taking her small wrist into his hand. Together, the two walked towards the party area.

------------------------------

"Sasuke! What did you do to her?! Explain now!" Ino shouted, grabbing the poor teen roughly by the collar. Sakura tried calming her down.

"Ino-pig! We just outside for a while!" She said.

"For two hours and a half?! Did he rape you? Did he seduce you? Did he do anything impolite to you?!" Ino shouted louder with each sentence, shaking Sasuke's collar in her left fist. He got a bit dizzy.

"Ino-pig…um…can you let go of Sasuke-kun?" She asked kindly. Ino sighed and dropped him. He fell on his butt onto the hard floor.

"Ouch! Fuck…I hurt my ass…" Sasuke muttered, getting up.

"Ah! Sasuke-kun? Are you okay?" She asked. He smirked and nodded.

"Yeah…but my ass really hurts now…" He said. The blonde grinned evilly.

"But you didn't do anything to Sakura-chan, right?" She asked, adding that rare 'chan' to her best friend's name.

"I swear I didn't. We spent one hour with Zaku and Kin and an hour and a half at the park." Sasuke explained. She rose an eyebrow.

"Zaku and Kin? I thought you were enemies." Ino said. Sakura smiled warmly.

"We **were**. Now, we're friends with each other!" Sakura chirped happily. Suddenly, a very excited (and possibly drunk due to the spiked punch) Mikoto came in, holding a shiny camera. She pushed Sasuke and Sakura together.

"Smile!" She shouted, clicking away. Sakura gave a confused look before smiling. Sasuke only scoffed and scowled at the camera.

"Okay! **Group photo**!" The Uchiha mother screamed, her loud voice echoing through the large room. Everyone walked towards them, either lazily or excited.

They formed a row. Mikoto frowned.

"Get squished together or else I can't get all of you in the picture." She instructed. They moved towards the middle and were squeezed tight. She frowned again.

"This isn't going to work…hm…what do we do…?" She sighed and scratched her head. Sasuke looked at Sakura, then, lifted her up into a piggy back style. She yelped.

"Oh! Nice idea, Sasu-chan! Naruto pink up Hinata, Shikamaru pick up Ino and Neji pick up Ten Ten. Then, we'll have enough room." Mikoto said happily. Itachi smirked at his younger brother, who glared in return.

Once the four 'couples' did what they were told, Mikoto set the camera on the tripod and set the timer on. She quickly rushed into the picture as everyone smiled. Naruto held Hinata with one arm while giving a peace sign. She merely smiled and blushed at the camera.

Shikamaru smirked lazily, while Ino grinned and wrapped her arms around her lover's neck a bit too tightly for his liking.

Neji smiled lightly as Ten Ten made a silly face, placing bunny ears behind the male Hyuuga's head.

Sasuke smirked this time while Sakura smiled warmly.

Gaara glared, Chouji rested his fat arm on Shikamaru's shoulder, Kiba made an awkward pose, pretending to be a peeing dog, Akamaru followed suit, Sai grinned sending gangster signs and Mikoto hugged Itachi tightly. He was the one to scowl this time.

**Flash!**

And that was a picture perfect…sort of.

------------------------------

**The Next Morning: Day 10**

Sakura and the rest of the girls packed sadly. Tissues covered in tears filled each trashcan in the room.

"Knock…knock…"

"Come in…" Sakura answered gloomily. The door opened to reveal Ino, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Neji and Naruto. (remember, Ino was always in a different suite.)

"Hello…"

"Hi…"

Today seemed so sad and gloomy.

"Um…the limo's here…" Naruto said, looking at the ground. Sakura frowned as she zipped her bags closed.

'This trip seemed so short…I didn't want it to end so soon…'

She glanced at Sasuke, who was glaring at the floor.

They checked out of the hotel and walked into the limo. Despite the big size of it, everyone was cramped inside because of all the luggage.

"Where to, kids?" The limo driver asked.

"The airport." Sasuke replied.

"Please." Sakura added, smiling at the Uchiha. He only looked away to look out the window.

Mikoto and Itachi left with the others (such as Gaara and Sai) back home already. They had (well, Mikoto had) a tearful goodbye with Sakura.

The limo finally pulled to a stop. Ino paid him and they all picked up their bags. Everything was silent between them.

They bought their tickets and sat down at the benches.

**Okinawa, Japan: 12:00**

Naruto, Hinata and Shikamaru sighed sadly. They would be the first ones leaving in just 30 minutes.

**Toyko, Japan: 12:30**

Ino and Sakura looked at each other with sad, smiling faces, their eyes refusing to leak tears.

**New York, US: 1:15**

Ten Ten and Neji exchanged sad glances. Sasuke frowned.

After moments of long, nearly unending silence, Naruto stood up, biting his lower lip.

"We…we have to go now…" He muttered, viewing his watch. Hinata looked at everyone as Shikamaru massaged his shoulders.

Sakura stood up and enveloped Naruto into a tight hug. He frowned when he felt her tears, wet on his shirt. He patted her back.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure to e-mail and send letters!" Naruto exclaimed in an optimistic tone. Hinata walked forward and tapped Sakura shyly on the shoulder.

The pink-haired girl released Naruto and hugged the female Hyuuga. Naruto smiled as he went to go exchange goodbyes with the guys.

"I'll miss you…" Sakura whispered to her friend, crying. Hinata blinked back tears.

"Y-yes…I'll call you soon." She replied. Sakura went up to Shikamaru and gave him a small hug.

"We'll be able to play virtual shougi (SP . ) , right?" She asked. He smirked and nodded. Ino walked up to him and gave him a short kiss.

"Bye!" The three walked off, melting into the crowd. Sakura wiped away her tears. After a few minutes, Ino looked at her watch.

"Forehead…we have to go…" She muttered. Sasuke glanced at the pink-haired girl as she stood up and picked up her bags. They all said goodbye.

But Sasuke took Sakura wrist and took something out of his pocket. He handed her a box. (No, it's not an engagement ring XD)

"Ah…thanks Sasuke-kun…" She said, smiling. She opened the box and gasped. She held up the lavender hair ribbon. Sasuke found himself kicking nervously at the carpet.

"I know…it was cheap but…you know what it means. Those fireworks and all…um…" He trailed off. She was crying.

"You hate it don't you? I knew I should've gotten something better. I'm such an idi"—

Sakura quickly stood up on her toes and kissed him. He widened his eyes, before closing them, enjoying her sweet taste. He nibbled on her lower lip, asking for entrance. She let him, and their tongues danced together.

She moaned against his lips.

"Ahem…"

They broke apart, blushing and breathing heavily. They forgot that Neji, Ten Ten and Ino were still there.

"Oh…um…I should go. Thank you, Sasuke-kun." She hugged him.

"I love you…" She whispered into his ear. She blushed as she picked up her bags and rushed off with Ino.

Sasuke touched his lips as he thought about what he said.

"That was some make out session…" Ten Ten joked, giggling. Neji smirked as he silently agreed.

"Shut up. I bet you and Neji have shared a few kisses." He countered back. He sighed as he sank into his chair.

_**'I love you too…'**_

Sasuke thought as he looked at the plane flying off into the sky.

Sakura smiled to herself as she carefully tied the lavender ribbon into her hair.

------------------------------

**_Filler Scene_**

Sakura sighed lazily. The plane ride was being so boring. She picked up her book bag and widened her eyes.

"Eh? This isn't my book bag!" She said loudly. She looked inside and gasped when she saw tons of porn books sleeping there. Sakura nervously observed the book bag and saw the neat, written letters, _'Itachi'_ on the bag.

Somewhere in America

Itachi frowned when he picked up his book bag. He read the front. It said _'Sakura'_ in decorative, flowery calligraphy. He nearly cried when he found 'Fruits Basket' manga inside.

_'Don't worry my babies…I'll get you back somehow…'_

'Babies' is referring to his porn books.

**_End Filler Scene_**

**A/N: Ahh! It's finally over! I'll miss writing this story, but don't worry, a sequel is going to happen! It'll take a while, though. I have the rough draft, but I'm not exactly satisfied with it. It'll take a bit of rewriting before it goes up. In the meantime, you can read my new story 'A Voice Filled With Love'.**

**Looking back at the first chapter, I've realized my writing skills have improved, and yes, I'm praising myself. Thanks to you all!**

**The filler scene was to clear up Itachi's porn problem. You'll see him in the next story scraping up some money to buy more. Old habits die hard.**

**Thank you so much to:**

**-MusicIZeverythinG-, Affectionate, Aoi Hana9, BabySnoopy, Breanna91, Cherry Bomber 360, CherryYuki-chan, Cherryheartz, CosmicSilence, Crazy Neko Girl, Dark Shining Light, Defiant-Crayon, Dreamer94678, EmXchan, Freedomstar999, Green Pinquin, Queen, Guard hXc, HCO, Itachi-kunsOneTrueLove, Izari-Hime, Kunoichi-of the-Leaf, L is 4 LOVE, Mrs Water Cooler, Nami Hyuga, Rin Izumi, RosePetalPrincess, Sakura and Sasuke's Angel, SharinganCherry, TaimeHawk12, Tari Shiro, The Filipina Dreamer, Vampire-cutie18, XxPinkCherryBlossoms4, XxSuicidal-CupcakexX, Zoeraine, anime-naruto-rox-16, ayane04, bored2death1027, cherry blossom petals, chocolateangel5, daisherz365, daydreamer22057, dreamer5593, elwand, eyezue66613, itachiandsak4ever, kee-chan, lalagirl55x, luv2killu, mabui-hime, missyserena214, mk-chan160, nagoto, nightblossom46, ninja7goth7vampire, oh.bonita, pandagirl08, sasukeanime79, sessygilr648, sexi-emo-princess, shadow-dog18, slavetothekeyboard, tenten of the cherries xx, theshiningedge, wickedcherryblossom, x0xabbydalex0x, xXx s2up3d Lov3r xXx and yourdarkdesire!!!**

**Above are all the people who added my story to their favorites!!! Only 31 of these 70**** people bothered to review!!! So, please, PLEASE ****review! I'll go on my knees!!! PLEASE REVIEW!!! Thank you. I love you all. **

**Review and you'll be rewarded with a cookie. Yes, no one can resist the cookie, unless you're pure evil. **


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